Iraq

Middle east developer DAMAC has announced that it plans to invest around $15bn (£7.7bn) constructing a mixed-use project in Iraq’s Kurdistan province in an effort to kickstart the region’s recovery following the Iraq war.

The company plans to start building phase one at a cost of $4.5bn (£2.3bn) of Tarin Hills in the northern town of Erbil, at the tail end of this year. The scheme, which will measure around 170m sq ft, will include residential, commercial, retail, hospitality, entertainment, health and sporting facilities.

Peter Riddoch, CEO of DAMAC, commented: “The hills of Tarin will be transformed into a golf course residential community with villas surrounding and intertwined amongst the 18-hole course. This community will be augmented with a golf club and health centre, which will be a focal point destination for recreation and leisure. In addition to this, the community will encompass a water and theme park, arts and crafts centres, retail complexes, besides schools and business parks."

DAMAC chairman Hussain Sahwani believes that Tarin Hills could be the catalyst for turning the Kurdistan region into an “attractive destination for both high-end and mass tourism.”

He added: “There are five million people in Kurdistan from different classes and there are many people from Iraq that would like to take residence or move to Kurdistan because it is safer.”

Sahwani also wants to lure back all those people who left Iraq for Europe and the Middle East during the rule of previous president Saddam Hussain, or otherwise left to escape the war. “They would like to come back, and want luxurious residences to live in,” Sahwani concluded.

Anyone who may be concerned about investing in the region will be reassured to learn that DAMAC plans to create a fully gated community with security gates, 24-hour security, a police station and a civil defense base, all of which will be situated on site.

Nechirvan Barzani, prime minister of the Kurdistan regional government of Iraq, has welcomed the planned initiative. He said: "The Tarin Hills development will not only help promote the global face of Erbil, it will also create jobs and support growth in related sectors, such as tourism and hospitality. We thank DAMAC for taking this initiative, which is a very positive statement, and a symbol of the stability and growth potential of the Kurdistan region. We are confident of the success of this project and pledge our full cooperation with DAMAC and its investors in making Tarin Hills a world-class development."