Ladies and Gentlemen,
Yet another year has passed in which we celebrate our achievements and renew our
ambitions. throughout 2009, we have implemented the promises we made, which have
helped in building the foundations for a strong economy, leading to our ultimate
goal of a sovereign and independent Palestine.
Today the Palestine investment Fund enjoys a reputation as one of the region's
leading investment funds, as it oversees with a best in class team and in
partnership with some of the world's leading organizations an ambitious
investment program, which broadcasts not only the message that "Palestine is
open for business", but that we are well on our way to establishing a
sustainably growing and strong local economy.
PIF has made significant strides during 2009 in the implementation of its
investment program, which will exceed $4 billion during the next five years. the
program is expected to generate more than 100,000 new jobs, strengthen the local
economy, and raise standards of living. moreover, our program has and will
continue to generate significant new income streams for the Palestinian
authority; lessening dependence on external aid.
Among the most significant achievements in 2009 was the creation of amaaR Real
estate Group with a paid in capital of $220 million, which is set to
revolutionize the real-estate and hospitality sector, and the laying of the
cornerstones for al-Reehan and al-Jinan neighborhoods, two new landmark projects
in alBireh-Ramallah and Jenin, respectively. moreover, Wataniya mobile commenced
operations as the second mobile operator in Palestine, ushering in a new era of
mobile communication, and heralding the liberalization of the sector with the
introduction of much needed competition. Wataniya mobile attracted 100,000
subscribers during the first month of operation, creating more than 3,000 new
jobs, and generating a multiplier effect in investment activity.
Furthermore, PiF entered into new and pioneering local and regional
partnerships. One of the most significant is our recent partnership with abraaj
Capital, the menasa region's leading asset management firm, to launch
Palestine's first private equity fund targeting small and medium enterprises (smes)-
"the Palestine Growth Capital Fund," which will be managed by Riyada enterprise
development - abraaj's smes platform.
In addition, we are proud to have partnered with Qatar telecom (Q-tel) to launch
Wataniya mobile, as well as a number of international financial institutions and
international governmental agencies both in the public and the private sectors
to launch strategic projects such as the: middle east investment initiative (meii),
Overseas Private investment Corporation (OPiC), un-Habitat, international
Finance Corporation (iFC) and Cooperative Housing Foundation international (CHF)
as well as a number of local financial institutions such as Bank of Palestine
and Cairo-amman Bank.
These achievements and partnerships would not have been such a success had it
not been for our collaborative teamculture,witheveryindividualhavingawinningattitude and a commitment to
serving our country. in addition to our corporate governance frameworks, our
world-class standards of transparency and accountability, applied to every stage
of the firm's activities, and between our internal and external auditors.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Our financial results for the year are indeed remarkable. as of year-end PiF's
assets are estimated to be approximately $802 million. despite the global
financial crisis, PiF generated a net income of approximately $62 million in
2009. most of these profits will be transferred to the treasury, resulting in
PiF having transferred profits of more than $606 million to the public purse.
I am very pleased to present to you our annual Report for 2009. i consider it a
summary of our activities and various projects, as well as an update on the
progress we have made, successes made and key wins shared.
Finally, on behalf of the Board of directors, i express my profound gratitude to
He President mahmoud abbas for his wise guidance and continuing support. i also
thank the PiF team for their untiring work, dedication and professionalism. i
also thank all institutions of the Palestinian authority, official and
governmental entities, and our partners who continue to demonstrate the
commitment, dedication and enthusiasm in the implementation of our programs,
which are destined for the benefit of our great nation and her citizenry.
God bless Palestine and her people.
Yours, dr. Mohammad Mustafa
Chairman & chief executive officer |
