2005-2008: Ras Al Khaimah: Investment Promotion

ARABIAN OPPORTUNITIES FUND.

CLICK ON THIS http://www.ameinfo.com/89969.html

Arabian Opportunities 2 to invest 300 million euros in freehold properties in Ras Al Khaimah

Arabian Opportunities 2, a Hamburg based Property Fund, has opened its branch in a Free Zone managed by the RAK Investment Authority with a view to invest in real estate opportunities in Freehold Areas that are coming up in Ras Al Khaimah.

United Arab Emirates: Tuesday, June 27 - 2006

Nearly 300 million euros is being collected from investors in Germany for investments in real estate properties in the Middle East. RAK emerged as the favorite to harness the bulk of this fund thanks to its freehold laws and integrated master-plan with beach front tourism properties, mountain based projects and state of the art business and media zone projects.

Arabian Opportunities 2 RAK Branch which was registered in the RAK Investment Authority Free Zone is managed by Markus Müller (43, Banker and Insurance Manager ) and Markus Wagner (34, Grad. Business Administrator, M.A. hons.)

• There is a master plan in place for Ras Al Khaimah and the growth is planned. Infrastructural problems are not likely and there are plenty of freehold properties in the master-plan to accommodate foreign investor interest. The Marjan Island, The Al Hamra Village, the Minal Arab, the Gateway City are all seen as possibilities by the Fund.

The Wagners have also been encouraged by the trust reposed in them by the RAK Investment Authority.Dr Massaad has signed an MOU with the Wagners to promote Ras Al Khaimah as a destination for tourism and investments in the city of Hamburg and Lubeck where Mr. Adolf Wagner is an established name.

This project was my baby and my experience in handling Merril Lynch while at JWT came in very handy. What clinched this deal was the element of trust they had in us and the fact that we were able to understand the nuances of funds and international law. It also helped us get a base in Germany which is an important tourism market for us.

ALIVE WITH POSSIBILITIES An article from the FDI Magazine.

The once sleepy northern emirate of Ras Al Khaimah is bursting into life with a wealth of upscale leisure and commercial facilities in the pipeline.

The northern emirate, the seventh to join the UAE, which is zipping along with an annual growth of 4.4% GDP, is embarking on a massive tourism-oriented building plan that includes significant residential and commercial components. Everything from an ambitious spaceport to enormous theme parks and a 12-kilometre (km) ski slope are looming on the horizon, as the government aims to secure a larger slice of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) tourism cake.

The commercial real estate sector is also stirring into life with a spate of big deals hatched this year. Mirage Holdings FZCO, a Hollywood-based film production firm, will set up and operate Film and Media City, an investment costing $1bn. The Mirage Studio complex sits on 480 acres of real estate, close to the new Emirates Highway. In addition to the production studio, it will have an entertainment shopping centre, villas, apartments and office space for rent, a golf course and polo field.

Businessman Sultan Ali Lakhani has invested Dh150m in a television port and up-linking facility, which is attracting audio and film studios and news agencies.

Ends

The last two media projects were on my initiative and a direct result of my efforts. It came about through diligent one to one selling and follow up. In the case of Sultan Ali, we got him to cancel his investment in another Emirate and come to RAK. This was prompted by the kind of location we offered him and the fact that we understood the media business completely.

In the case of Mirage FZCO, too the selling point was that we understood the media business and were quick to react. The whole process of identifying the land and completing the lease and legal formalities hardly took 4 working days!!

VARIETY has carried a news report on this project:
CLICK ON THIS http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117948006.html

BMM Students at VIVEKANANDA

Given below is a letter sent by some of my students from the Bachelor

of Mass Media batch at Vivekananda Educational Society for Arts,

Science and Commerce.I taught them in 2001when they were in

their first semester. They were allegedly recalcitrant, but I found

them extremely bright and talented. They were a lively bunch and

7 years later, they have turned out to be very successful professionals.

Students have turned out to be my wealth and letters like this,

prized possessions.

THE LETTER:
Hello Sir,

                    How are you? I couldn't decide

what to write to you. We gave our first University

Exams this time.They got over yesterday. We did

okay but not very satisfactory. We met in college

today to decide the faculty for the next semester.

The portion is vast in the last two semesters

and the professors just don't give justice to it.

We faced a lot of problem this semester because

of this.We dint have a clue what we had to study

for the exams.And today when we met for the

faculty we want for the next semester we

remembered you. And we remembered you every time

we talked anything about our faculty. 

It has been one year since we finished the third

semester and we appeared for two papers taught

by you.It has been a long time and we have missed

you every moment of it.The principal and the

vice principal think that we like professors who

are soft on us and are very lenient.But that's

not true. To be frank with you, you were never

very lenient with us. But the kind of inspiration

you gave us was tremendous.

None of our professors who have taught us for the

lat two semesters have inspired us as much as you have.

We still remember the time when you used to say "YES"

or "BINGO" when someone gave a correct answer.

It was a great feeling when you pointed at one of us

and say "BINGO".We made us feel special. We still

imitate you and say "YES or "BINGO".

One more thing that we have realized after these exams

is that our advertising basics have been very clear under

your training.We could answer a lot of questions even in

this exam after one year on the basis of what you had

taught us. Our foundation of advertising has become so

strong, thanks only to you. One more thing we have

observed is that we used to wait for your lectures.

It was a disappointment if you were not able to come.

We would wait in the corridor for the blue Santro.

There was healthy competition in class for being

the best in your projects. I can never forget my

Mercedes project. 

On this Diwali sir, after one year, we miss

you a lot. We feel each teacher should have the

kind of passion you had in your teaching.

But of course there cannot be another
Prof. Vinod Natesan. Whatever our success sir,

the credit goes to you. Thanx a lot for making

us better advertising professionals and mot of

all inspiring us with your actions. We still

feel inspired when we remember you. 

We would all like to wish you a Very

Happy and Prosperous Diwali. Please stay in

touch. We miss you a lot. We wish you were

here to guide us.

Best wishes to our best teacher

Missing you

The class of 2001 SYBMM

Your dream batch.