- Barwa General Assembly approves distribution of 20% cash dividends
- Barwa Real Estate portfolio expanded during 2019 to include 8,129 residential units, 37,340 residential rooms for workers, 335,981 square meters of commercial units, showrooms and offices, as well as 445,779 square meters of workshops and storages
- Barwa has a land bank of 7.7 million square meters, of which 5.2 million square meters is within Qatar
- Barwa has a 3.6 million square meters in built-up area under operation, offering residential projects, workers accommodation, warehouses, retail showrooms and office spaces.
Doha - Thursday 16 April 2020: Barwa Real Estate Company Q.P.S.C. held its Ordinary General Assembly Meeting on Wednesday, April 15, 2020, at 4:30 p.m. remotely (online) in a serious step towards the implementation of the laws of the Government of Qatar, which directed to prevent all forms of gathering amid efforts to stem the spread of the Coronavirus (Covid-19). The meeting was held with a complete quorum of (74.96%).
Board elections and online voting on the agenda items of the General Assembly
This year's General Assembly meeting witnessed the elections of Barwa Real Estate Board of Directors, where shareholders voted for the candidates at Barwa headquarters located in Barwa Al Sadd Towers, by filling the nomination form and placing it in the voting box. The shareholders were then given the link to attend the meeting remotely. The number of attendees inside the meeting hall was limited to the Chairman of the Board of Directors, a limited number of members of the board of directors, the CEO of Barwa Real Estate, the auditor and representatives of the Ministry of Trade and Industry - Companies Control, in addition to key employees in the company. Barwa also published all the annual reports on the company's website well in advance of the meeting.
In cooperation with the Ministry of Trade and Industry - Companies Control, an online voting mechanism was developed for the shareholders through Zoom application in order to enable them to vote on and approve the items of the agenda of the Ordinary General Assembly.
And the representatives of the Ministry of Trade and Industry announced the winning of the following candidates in the membership of the Board of Directors for the period 2020 _ 2022:
MR. Nasser Sultan N AL-Hmaidi
MR.Abdulrahman Mohammed M A Al-Khayarin
MR. Nasser Ali G A Alhajri, Representing Ras Rokun Estate Investment company
MR. Ahmad Khalid A A Al-Maadeed
Substitute:
MR. Jamal Matar M A Al-Naimi
The Qatari Diar Company announced the appointment of the members of the Board of Directors, who are:
His Excellency Mr. Salah bin Ghanem Al-Ali
Mr. Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah
Mr. Ahmed Mohamed Nour Mohamed Tayeb.
Barwa has made the video and audio recording of the meeting and adhered to the necessary quorum of the meeting, in the first experiment to hold its Ordinary General Assembly remotely.
During the online meeting, agenda items of the Ordinary General Assembly discussed and approved the Board of Directors' report and the Group's financial statements for the fiscal year 2019, the auditors' report, the Sharia Supervisory Board report and the Corporate Governance report.
A cash dividend proposal of 20% (20 dirhams per share) was approved, achieving a rate of return of 6.5% on the share price. The members of the Board of Directors were absolved of any liability and their remuneration was determined. The meeting ended with the appointment of auditors for the financial year 2020.
His Excellency Mr. Salah bin Ghanem Al-Ali, Chairman of Barwa Real Estate Company presented the report of the Board of Directors on the company's activities and its financial position, as well as its future plans.
His Excellency Mr. Salah bin Ghanem Al-Ali pointed out Barwa's performance and accomplishments during the year 2019, being a dynamic and influential contributor to the development of Qatar, and being keen to enhance the strategic partnership with the Government of Qatar to build projects that could address the needs of the marketplace in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030.
Throughout 2019, Barwa Real Estate focused its efforts on the developmental projects that support the Qatari economy, and these are highlights of Barwa achievements at the projects level:
- Start of leasing activities of Mukaynis Compound with occupancy rates reaching 84% in the first phase of the project, equivalent to 29% of the total project to date.
- Completion of the construction works of Al Baraha Workshops and Storages with the rental rate reaching 97% of the workshops and 58% of the storages.
- Completion of the construction works of the second phase of Al Khor Workers Sports Complex and achieving 3.2 million working hours without accidents in the project. It is planned to obtain all necessary permits and start operating and leasing the project in the first quarter 2020.
- All works of Al Khor Housing project Package (09) have been completed in May 2019, which includes 110 Villas that have been fully leased.
- Completion of all construction works of Dara A, the first phase of Dara project. Options are being studied to achieve the highest possible return on the project, whether by selling or leasing.
- Barwa also started building car service centers on the first of August 2019 as the first part of the third phase of Madinat Mawater, which is an extension of the first and second phases. The company is currently studying the market to determine a suitable timing to start the second part of this phase.
- Barwa real estate portfolio expanded to include 8,129 residential units, 37,340 residential rooms for workers, 335,981 square meters of commercial units, showrooms and offices, as well as 445,779 square meters of workshops and storages.
Barwa Real Estate currently owns a 7.7 million square meters of land bank, 5.2 million square meters of which is land within the State of Qatar. Having such a rich land bank places the Company in an advantageous position to build more projects to sell or keep as a source of reoccurring revenues.
Barwa also owns 3.6 million square meters in built-up area under operation, offering residential projects, workers accommodation, warehouses, retail showrooms, and office spaces.
On the financial side, His Excellency explained that the company achieved net profits attributable to shareholders of the parent company of QR 1,503 million and return on share of QR 0.39. His Excellency also pointed out that, despite the challenges that faced the real estate market during the year 2019, which negatively affected developers and real estate investors in general, Barwa worked hard to accommodate those challenges and reduce the impact of them as much as possible, and Barwa was keen to support and maintain Sustainable returns, as the group succeeded in achieving a total recurring operating income of QR 1,556 million, most of which comes from rental income of projects belonging to the group, and succeeded in reducing general and administrative expenses by QR 21 million, equivalent to 8% compared to 2018.
The consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year 2019 also witnessed a decrease in the non-recurring profits such as the sale of properties and gain made on debt restructure in addition to the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standard No. 16.
The total assets of the group reached the value of QR 32 billion showing an increase of QR 1.6 billion from December 31, 2018. The equity attributable to the shareholders of the parent company amounted to QR 19.9 billion. in addition to the group maintaining a cash balance of QR 1.25 billion.
Accordingly, the Board of Directors of Barwa Real Estate Company proposed to the shareholders' General Assembly the distribution of a cash dividend of 20% (QR 0.20 per share).
Barwa Real Estate is committed to corporate governance code, systems, risk management and internal controls, as it emphasizes on the importance of promoting and spreading a culture of integrity, transparency and credibility in its commercial and administrative transactions by ensuring the highest levels of compliance to the Corporate Governance Code of Listed Companies, as regulated by the Qatar Financial Markets Authority. Barwa Real Estate Group considers corporate governance one of the main pillars that form the guidelines of its operational and administrative activities, and dealings with all stakeholders. With this philosophy in mind, The Board of Directors, by delegating the authority to the executive management, seeks to accelerate commercial operations, eliminate complications and ensure the highest levels of operational efficiency. This has a positive impact on the company's projects and serves the interest of the shareholders.
Barwa considers the human element to be the key to success of its business, therefore the company invests its efforts into attracting and retaining talented employees. Barwa Real Estate is committed to its social responsibility by developing many targeted long-term initiatives, whether in terms of developing residential communities for workers or in terms of security and safety measures or through participation in national events. Barwa pays special attention to the working class, as it provides a wide range of services and facilities that ensure their enjoyment of a sustainable residential environment and also organizes a variety of events that serve the workers within its projects in Barwa Al Baraha, Barwa Al Khor and Mukaynis Compound in cooperation with the Waseef Company and the Ministry of Interior, while taking care to implement Security and safety measures in its projects and in accordance with the frameworks established by the Government of Qatar. Barwa is constantly looking to support and sponsor activities and celebrations of the National Day, as an expression of solidarity, national unity and pride in the Qatari identity.
In terms of future plans, H.E. Mr. Al-Ali pointed out that Barwa aims during the year 2020 to work on various aspects which the group considers to be the pillars of its business. Increase in revenue is one of those aspects, which achieve sustainable growth for Barwa revenues and returns for its shareholders, through achieving a balanced mix of operational projects that meets the needs of the real estate market in Qatar, and lower the potential of risks linked to it. Barwa expects improvement in occupancy levels in its investment portfolio in the short to medium term with the FIFA World Cup 2022 approaching. As for the long term, Barwa believes in the Qatar National Vision 2030, which is the main drive of long-term growth.
Reducing cost is another aspect of focus for Barwa in 2020, by reviewing operational and administrative and financing costs in order to ensure maximum benefit and reduce cost without affecting the quality of the projects and services provided.
Barwa will work on raising brand value of the group and activating the corporate system, by improving shareholder and customer satisfaction with Barwa performance, contributing to national and social initiatives as well as raising the efficiency of the organizational and administrative structure.
During 2020, Barwa will:
1. Enhance the strategic partnership with the government of Qatar to address market needs, hence, Barwa participated in in tenders offered by the Public Works Authority "Ashghal", to develop various real estate projects according to the partnership model between the public and private sectors (PPP).
2. Complete projects under development, including the additional works in Mukynis Compound and the car service center as part of the third phase of Madinat Mawater.
3. Put together a proposal for the development of Lusail Land, formerly known as Lusail Golf, being a distinct addition to the group's available land bank, which will give the group a good advantage in developing new projects in the future.
4. Studying a number of promising investment opportunities which go beyond the common framework for existing projects, focusing on investments in educational, healthcare and hospitality sectors.
5. Barwa will continue to study a number of investment opportunities, including phase three of Barwa Al Baraha and phase three of Barwa City, as well as the expansion of Umm Shaharian warehouses, preparing a detailed study to determine feasibility of the proposed design ideas and accomplish best use and return for the project.
At the end, His Excellency Mr. Salah Bin Ghanem Al Ali expressed deepest appreciation and gratitude to the wise leadership of H.H. Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of the State of Qatar, and His Excellency Sheikh Khalid Bin Khalifa Bin Abdulaziz Al Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of Interior. We also extend our gratitude to the company's shareholders and employees, for their continuous support to achieve our goals and to serve the interest of our country and its citizens, as well as the Qatar National Vision 2030.