Florian Wiedmann

Urban evolution of the city of Doha: an investigation into the impact of economic transformations on urban structures

During the second half of the 20th century Qatar has witnessed its first urbanisation period, which was linked to the rapidly increasing oil production. Today, new development strategies, which have been implemented to diversify its economy, have led to a second urban transformation process. Concomitantly, Doha has witnessed its rise from being a small fishing village community in the middle of the 20th century to an emerging regional urban centre with more than 1.5 million inhabitants. This paper offers an exploratory analysis of the urban evolution of Qatars capital city Doha based on Henri Lefebvres theory of space production. The paper explores different stages of economic transformation that have had a large impact on the structure of the citys society as well as its built environment. It also analyses, the most recent transformation process that began at the end of 20th century as a result of a rapidly growing real estate development generated by liberalisation policies and public investments. In order to understand the future impact of current economic development strategies, the citys past urbanisation stages and their spatial development factors are outlined through different periods - from the pre-oil settlement, to oil production, to liberalization and economic diversification strategies. The analysis of different stages manifests that each urbanization period was driven by a specific economic activity and was based on key governance and planning strategy with a particular impact on the urban structure and architecture. The paper concludes by relating the evolutionary process of the city to the challenges facing its future urban environment so that responsive strategies for liveability and quality of urban life can be envisioned and implemented.

Sustainable urban qualities in the emerging city of Doha

Various urban qualities are required for sustainable urban development, which is a particular challenge in the case of emerging cities such as Qatar’s capital, Doha. Therefore, this paper seeks to introduce a framework concerning how to investigate urban qualities and their production in space in order to clarify the challenges and limitations of planning for sustainability. The paper is based on analyses and evaluations of GIS data as well as a series of interviews with 10 planning experts at the Ministry of Municipalities and Urban Planning and a series of questionnaires received from 350 inhabitants. After introducing the basic framework as a model, the three dimensions of sustainability – ecological efficiency, economic growth and social equity – are analysed in relation to the urban qualities needed for producing them. In conclusion the general challenges in establishing sustainable urban development mechanisms in Doha are discussed.

When the Oryx takes off : Doha a new rising knowledge hub in the Gulf-region?

With accelerating pace in the past years, Qatar has strategically pushed forward its economic diversification. According to Qatars long-term development vision, the knowledge-economy is taking a key role within this economic diversification process and the transformation of its capital into a regional as well as global service-hub. This paper aims at identifying emerging knowledge-based patterns that drive the Qatari space economy. We apply a research concept that brings together two different scientific angles: relational economic geography and physical urban development aspects. The results indicate first a subsidiary role for the Qatari knowledge intensive firms within the Gulf region; second their predominant connectivity patterns to Europe and South-East Asia; third as a distinct lack of urban amenities and qualities for knowledge workers.

A chronological exploration of the evolution of housing typologies in Gulf cities

This paper traces the evolution of housing typologies in four major cities in the Gulf region, namely Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Manama. The study reviews the formation and historical events in the region, which had a significant impact on new social as well as economic realities and consequently evolving housing types during the last two centuries. The methodological approach is based on reviewing a number of case studies representing local housing typologies throughout distinctive historic periods which were categorized in four periods: the post-nomadic, traditional, modern, and contemporary. The main objective is to identify the process of transformation by applying a comparative assessment of the different periods in order to examine continuities or ruptures between them. Thus, particular layout elements were analysed and compared. Conclusions are drawn to underline contemporary challenges while offering projections for future housing typologies in the selected cities and other similar ones.

Investigation of Housing Preferences in View of the Housing Market Dynamics in Doha Metropolitan

Since the 2000s, Doha has gone through enormous economic growth and urbanization processes. The massive migration inflows have suggested particular housing preferences that are driven by the demographic and lifestyle diversities of the multicultural population. Housing preferences of the multicultural population are defined in terms of housing location, cost, and typology. The paper aims to study housing preferences in view of the housing market dynamics in order to recommend future actions for housing planning and expansion. It focuses on the period from 2000 to 2017 where rapid urban development took place in Doha metropolitan considering cultural, sporting, economic, real estate, and political incidents. The methodological approach includes: questionnaire survey of housing preferences, and survey of the perceptions of housing market experts. The paper defines the major shifts in the housing market based on: the sporting events, construction boom, and real-estate boom. It will discuss solutions to reduce the gap between housing supply and demand. Also, it will conclude actions for future housing expansion based on the recommendations by key market experts towards a sustainable local economic growth.

Lifestyle trends and housing typologies in emerging multicultural cities

The introduction of new housing typologies in emerging cities is rooted in dynamics including infrastructural investments, urban growth rates and new development policies. In accommodating new lifestyles, demand-driven patterns by tenants and property owners are the main factors consolidating development trends in future. This paper explores the relationship between new lifestyle patterns and housing typologies in emerging cities. Within the context of Gulf cities, namely Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Manama, this paper investigates demographic structures and housing trends where a rapid phase of urban growth has transformed local urbanism. Current social structures were analysed by following a new ‘lifestyle framework’ resulting in the characterization of four main lifestyle trends. This is coupled with the assessment of 240 cases of new residences from the Gulf cities under study. The juxtaposition of both studies offers an outlook relevant to the importance of a transition from supply-driven to demand-driven housing dynamics to accommodate emerging multicultural societies. The paper thus contributes to a better understanding and identification of the social groups that are currently lacking suitable housing.

The everyday urban environment of migrant labourers in Gulf Cities: the case of the old centre of Doha, Qatar

Preventing the complete social restructuring and the relocation of migrant communities from traditional cores in Gulf cities to newly urbanized areas is a rising urban and social challenge. The Al Asmakh district in the old centre of Doha is an important example that manifests the current encounter between rising investment pressures and preserving the local identity including the particular urban life and spatial settings that have evolved over several decades. This paper presents key research findings with respect to the lived urban spaces of the Al Asmakh in order to exemplify the potential loss of very distinctive neighbourhoods and to introduce particular characteristics of urban spaces and the way migrant communities appropriate them. As part of a learning experiment undertaken at Qatar University in 2014, structured field surveys, systematic observations as well as behavioural mapping techniques were adopted as important approaches to investigation. The outcomes reveal stimulating dynamics between migrant communities and their environments. It also postulates that city residents have the capacity to recover swiftly from difficulties and resilience in spite of an impeding and hampering context. The paper concludes with projections of how contemporary transformation processes in Gulf cities will have to be based on diversity and social inclusion. Such a transformation should stem from the recognition that migrant communities need to have access to develop their own settings that relate to their routine spatial practices while securing the economic basis of many migrant labourers.

Fragmentation and Continuity in Qatar’s Urbanism: Towards a Hub Vision

In the past two decades Doha has witnessed enormous urban growth driven by various projects and strategies, which were launched to realise the vision of a hub city within international networks. Successively, the increasing investments in combination with liberalisation strategies have affected the decentralisation of urban governance, while dramatically transforming Doha’s urban structure and built environment. This chapter explores the recent developments in Qatar’s “urbanism”. The impact of large-scale investments of oil and gas revenues on urbanism in Qatar’s capital city of Doha is discussed to offer insights into recent developments by adopting a multi-layered methodological approach that includes two major components. The first is a series of interviews with experts and planners working on strategies and plans within the public sector, while the second is a review of recently published data and figures regarding investments in relation to positioning Doha as future “hub city”. The methodology helps identify investment strategies and aspects of decentralised urban governance within which urban development is undertaken. The chapter concludes with a brief on how a new form of urban governance may enable the effective implementation of a hub vision in the case of Qatar.

Gateways to the World: Port Cities in the Gulf

Within a matter of decades, Gulf port cities have rapidly evolved from regional centers of cultural and economic exchange to globalizing cities deeply embedded within the global economy. Explicitly evident features of Gulf cities such as international hotel chains, shopping centers, and entertainment complexes have classified these cities as centers of consumption. Other urban trends, such as exhibition and conference centers, media and knowledge cities, and branch campuses of Western universities have integrated Gulf cities within numerous global networks. In line with this, the CIRS research initiative on “The Evolution of Gulf Global Cities” examines dynamics of urban configurations in the Gulf region (the GCC, Yemen, Iraq, and Iran) in order to understand the city as a cultural and social space. Over the course of two working group meetings, CIRS invited academics from various disciplinary backgrounds as well as architects, urban planners, and designers to discuss their research findings and to present papers linking macro-level knowledge of urbanization and modernization projects in the Gulf with the micro-level understanding of everyday spaces of living and human interaction. The chapters are combined into an edited volume titled, Gateways to the World: Port Cities in the Persian Gulf.