into africa insight
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NORTHERN LIGHTS
A heightened awareness of international standards is driving real estate development across North Africa. Oliver Ephgrave takes a closer look at five key markets
The growing affluence and ambitions of the five Mediterranean countries in North Africa – Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt – is whetting the appetite of international investors and developers. Allon van den Bergh, associate responsible for the North Africa region at Cushman & Wakefield, says: “We are excited about the opportunities opening up across all our markets in the North Africa region. Already this year we are seeing increased interest from occupiers, developers and investors specifically with regard to Morocco, Libya and Egypt.” The region is particularly appealing to Middle East developers, as demonstrated by the involvement of
major UAE players Emaar and Al Maabar. Yves Delmar, CEO, Emaar Morocco, adds: “The North Africa region is one of the key emerging markets and offers strong potential for growth for developers.”
The opportunities for developers, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s van den Bergh, stem from the demand for quality. “Opportunities for international real estate investment follow the demand for international standards – we are now seeing the emergence of quality real estate development projects across many of these key North African cities,” he comments. Van den Bergh explains that this demand for quality
has been triggered by a greater awareness of inter- national standards. “Domestic GDP increases and the growing impact of global television and the Internet have increased expectations and demand for a more sophisticated retail sector, as well as higher quality residential development.” The greater levels of expectation are also driving commercial and office real estate development. Van den Bergh adds: “Iconic headquarter buildings are appearing in cities across the region along with out-of-town retail developments and commercial business parks such as Smart Village in Cairo, and the new telecom business park in Hay Riad on the outskirts of Rabat, Morocco.” He also highlights that Libya and Algeria are undergoing much needed infrastructure improvements. “Over the past decade these two nations have begun to focus on diversification of their economies away from oil and gas with improving infrastructure, social and educational facilities, and healthcare.”
26 /
/jun-sep 2010
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