Doha, Qatar - December 6, 2009 - Al Wa'ab City Management, the real estate developer behind Qatar's first fully-integrated family-oriented community, the Al Wa'ab City development, has announced the appointment of Mr. Charles Acworth as its Chief Operating Officer. This key addition to the executive team is in line with Al Wa'ab City's strategy of further enhancing its strong market position by reinforcing the existing management structure and continuously improving the quality of its processes and resources.
Mr. Acworth brings extensive and wide ranging expertise in both regional and international real estate markets, particularly as regards large mixed use real estate developments, as well as strategic business management experience. A qualified Chartered Surveyor with a career spanning 25 years in real estate, he has advised leading developers, banks, occupiers, and investors in the MENA region and has worked as both an adviser and a developer on some of the region's most prominent and complex schemes.
Sheikha Hanadi Nasser Bin Khaled Al Thani, CEO of Al Wa'ab City Management, said: "I wish to extend a warm welcome to Charles. We are delighted at being able to bring his expertise in both sophisticated and emerging markets to the Al Wa'ab City team. We strongly believe that his in-depth specialised knowledge of the real estate development sector will be invaluable as we push this innovative project forward despite worldwide industry changes.
"The Al Wa'ab City project embodies a visionary and progressive spirit and our management team reflects this in its diverse strengths and industry expertise," she continued. "The addition of Charles to our in-house team of professionals enhances the strong foundations we have in place to complete our comprehensive program."
Al Wa'ab City Managing Director, Mr. Ron Barrott, welcomed Mr. Acworth, noting the new COO's depth of management expertise, saying: "The current global market place and the real estate sector in particular demand inventive, original and pragmatic responses to changing needs and priorities. Mr. Acworth combines a solid background in conceptualizing and developing effectual program solutions with a visionary spirit. This spirit is an essential component of the Al Wa'ab City project and his expertise regarding a wide diversity and functions of property sectors, will be essential as we continue the development's success into new phases."
Following his appointment, Mr. Acworth commented: "Al Wa'ab City is so much more than simply a real estate development. This landmark development is the embodiment of the innovative and dynamic nature of Qatar and the Qatari market's noticeable stability in a period of international market upheaval. I am honoured to join such a distinguished team of professionals and to carry on Al Wa'ab City's vision and mission through to completion of the scheme and its ongoing management.
After an initial period in general real estate consulting in the UK, Charles Acworth gained a Master's degree in Land Economy at Cambridge University in 1987. He then spent the next 11 years working in a variety of real estate and business consulting roles in the UK where he also completed his MBA at Ashridge. In 2000, Mr Acworth began his international experience with four years in Kenya and Tanzania covering a range of real estate services across sectors including commercial (office, industrial and retail), residential and agricultural. Mr. Acworth moved to the Middle East in 2004 and has worked both as a consultant and real estate developer, his last role being a Director with a diverse responsibility at Aldar, the listed Abu Dhabi developer. His core focus has been in working on large, mixed use schemes, in Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Oman and Qatar. He has worked on schemes with a value totalling $75bn which will provide housing for more than 800,000 people together with supporting retail, commercial and leisure uses.
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© Press Release 2009
