DOHA: Rising office rentals and competition from foreign rivals have forced many Qatari engineering consultancies to close shop, says the head of the local association of engineers.
Ahmad Jassem Al Jolo (pictured) said yesterday that escalating rentals of office space and the general price rise were putting immense pressure on Qatari engineering consultancy firms.
On top of it the fact that these firms must compete with their foreign rivals is forcing many of them to close operations.
“A lot of foreign engineering consultancies are entering Qatar due to a string of development projects being launched for the 2022 FIFA event, making the local market highly competitive,” said Al Jolo.
The combined impact of rising prices and competition is too much for some local consultancies to bear.
Al Jolo praised the role being played by the Central Municipal Council (CMC) in highlighting the plight of local engineering consultancies.
The government, according to Al Jolo who heads Qatar Society of Engineers, should provide active support to local consultancies. “If nothing, they could be provided with affordable office space.”
Media reports, meanwhile, said there are only 80 Qatari engineering consultancies at present.
To ensure that their number rises, a new law enforced in 2011 allows any Qatari (whether an engineer or not) to set up an engineering consultancy.
No comments:
Post a Comment