IPA Qatar predicts that circular economy would bring enormous financial, social, and environmental benefits to Qatar

The Investment Promotion Agency Qatar (IPA Qatar) has highlighted the promising opportunities for green investment in waste management and predicted that the model of circular economy would bring enormous financial, social, and environmental benefits to Qatar, yielding an additional $17bn by 2030, corresponding to 10 percent of its GDP, and up to 19,000 new jobs by the same year. The study that explores the inherent potential in waste management sector in Qatar, said that the advanced connectivity and infrastructure give potential investors distinct opportunities in recycling, waste-to-energy technologies and materials recovery sub-sectors.

Qatar as a well-connected logistics and commerce hub that currently ranks 1st on the Global Finance Safety Index in the Arab world and boasts robust state initiatives for foreign investors, is eager to lead the sustainable waste management industry of the future, the study said, adding that the question that remains to be answered is who will enter its competitive business climate and make a mark on the Middle Easts waste management ecosystem.

The study also pointed out to four factors underpinning Qatar's waste management industry; namely recycling which encourages waste sorting and recycling techniques with the use of 20 percent of recycled materials in construction projects. It stated that the second factor entails the conversion of waste into energy, since Qatar generates over 30MW of electricity from its Domestic Solid Waste Management Centre (DSWMC). In the third factor, which is the materials recovery, the study indicated that Qatars current waste comprises approximately 5 percent metals 70 percent steel and 30 percent aluminum.

Handling the fourth factor which is partnerships, the study pointed out that the Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME) launched the investment portal Foras to promote PPPs, driven by innovation and discovery opportunities, adding that Qatar's national environment and climate strategy aims to close and rehabilitate 100 percent of unsanitary landfills and achieve a 15 percent material recycling rate of municipal waste. Its ambitious goals also create tangible opportunities across the waste management value chain.

The recent Waste Management sectoral study by the Investment Promotion Agency Qatar (IPA Qatar) demonstrated that the waste management market in Qatar is supported by nine existing waste management facilities and a government-led commitment towards the circular use of materials to promote economic growth, while preserving and enhancing natural capital.

Qatar's national environment and climate strategy aims to close and rehabilitate unsanitary landfills and achieve a 15 percent material recycling rate of municipal waste. Its ambitious goals also create tangible opportunities across the waste management value chain.

IPA Qatar's study pointed out that Cities in the GCC, Qatar’s capital Doha included, are the most urbanized, containing 85 percent of the region’s population today, a proportion that is expected to rise to 90 percent by 2050. In its sustainable planning, the country has invested in the construction of circular cities, Lusail and Msheireb Downtown Doha, as blueprints for sustainable living where pneumatic waste collection, sewage treatment plants, district cooling, centralized facilities and GSAS are the rule, not the exception.

Waste Management sectoral study said that building out this sustainable vision will be imperative in the coming decades. While international and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) play a pivotal role in coordinating and helping circular practices reach scale, corporate investors will take on a central role in expanding the industry. Diverting investments towards sustainable waste management will have a multiplier effect in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

With it come direct and indirect economic benefits, from industrial waste accounting for the largest revenue share of global waste with 50 percent, to the long-term implications of environmental protection with a large part of the world’s economic output depending upon the viability of natural systems.

The study said that because of population growth and industrialization, more and more of the precious space on the planet will be taken up by waste, which is expected to grow to a whopping 3.4 billion tons globally by 2050.

However, it continued by pointing out that this enormous number also holds immense opportunity for sustainable investments in waste management and technological advancements under a circular economy, especially that the region produces about 6 percent of the world's waste with prevalent disposal methods ranging from open dumps and landfills to recycling facilities.