“This time you have brought your son with you, which means that you are already putting down roots in our capital city,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted. “You are more than welcome here not because you are a very rich person, but because you stood with Belarus during difficult times. The leadership of the Emirates has always supported Belarus. We appreciate that you cooperate with Belarus and, most importantly, invest in Belarus. In other words, you are a close and time-tested friend of our country,” Aleksandr Lukashenko added.
The president noted that despite the challenging year of 2020, Belarus and the UAE significantly grew their trade that amounted to $110 million last year.
“Today I would like to hear whether you still want to run business in Belarus,” the head of state said. “I would also like to hear your take on many of the projects that we discussed with the Crown Prince when he was here. And you also suggested launching a number of projects in Belarus in which you are extremely interested,” Aleksandr Lukashenko added.
After the meeting with the Belarusian head of state, Mohamed Alabbar noted that the Belarusian economy is operating steadily despite the pandemic and this is a good sign for investors. “I will keep working and investing in Belarus,” the Arab businessman told journalists.
The Arab business is running an ambitious smart city project in Minsk estimated at €4 billion. The project provides for building the Northern Waterfront multifunctional complex within the boundaries of the Minsk Ring Road, Pobeditelei Avenue, Orlovskaya Street and Tsnyanskoye Reservoir. The complex will include residential buildings with all the necessary engineering and transport infrastructure, social infrastructure facilities and public facilities with a total area of more than six million square meters.
The first to be built will be the International Exhibition Center, the Institute of Artificial Intelligence, the Minsk World Trade Center. In October 2020, Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko and Mohamed Alabbar placed a commemorative capsule at the construction site of the National Exhibition Center.
Mohamed Alabbar is one of the biggest and most successful businessmen of the UAE. He is a developer of the concept of modern Dubai, a key advisor on economic and investment issues of the leaders of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. He is a co-owner of large international companies specializing in e-commerce, catering, fashion and design. His net worth is estimated at $4.6 billion.
Emaar Properties is one of the world's biggest real estate development companies and investors. It operates more than 60 affiliated companies and is present on more than 35 markets of the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. It specializes in hospitality business, trade and entertainment infrastructure, commercial rent, IT and other services for business, investment and real estate.
The biggest construction projects of Dubai, including the tallest structure and building in the world Burj Khalifa and one of the largest shopping centers Dubai Mall, were implemented by Emaar Properties. Another ambitious project is the King Abdullah Economic City in Saudi Arabia. The project is estimated to cover 168 square kilometers. It includes a seaport, an industrial zone, business, recreation and apartment zones, educational and healthcare facilities, retail facilities.
