New weapons for boats, 150 security vehicles and upgraded IT systems to monitor the media and store residents’ fingerprint records were among the deals Qatar signed at this year’s homeland security expo.
The 11 contracts were worth QR260 million and agreed to by the Ministry of Interior (MoI) during the first two days of Milipol, which concluded yesterday.
The expo, which was not open to the public, featured the latest innovations and expertise in border security, civil defense and road safety.
The largest single deal was worth QR140 million and went to Turkish shipbuilding corporation Ares Besiktas for equipment and weapons for boats, according to a statement issued by Milipol this week.
The statement did not give any further details about the contract.
However, this is not the first deal Qatar has struck with the shipyard. In 2014, the government contracted Ares to provide Qatar’s Coast Guard with 17 high-speed patrol boats worth QR200 million.
Last month, Ares announced that the first three boats had been delivered to Qatar and that the MOI was expected to receive a further two by the end of this year.
More vehicles
Also this week, two separate deals were struck with Qatar-based motor companies to provide vehicles for the MOI.
This included a QR25.4 million agreement with Abullah Abdul Ghani & Bros. Co. to supply 120 Toyota cars, and a contract with Saleh Hamad Al Mana Co. worth QR6.7 million to supply 30 Nissan cars.
Other agreements included:
- A QR22.25 million contract with UK-based De La Rue International Ltd. to supply travel documents printers;
- A QR21.7 million deal with Gulf Business Machines, headquartered in the UAE, for licenses for operating programs and the development of computer systems for the MOI;
- A QR11.5 million contract with Airbus Defense and Space for the maintenance, supply and upgrade of Tetra radio systems. Earlierthis year, the European defense organization said it was awarded a contract to supply Qatar’s Armed Forces with satellite data;
- A QR10 million agreement to maintain residency document printerswith Dubai-based GET Group;
- A QR7.8 million contract with Safran Identity & Security to provide new fingerprinting systems and an expansion of the fingerprinting database;
- A QR7.8 million deal with Telco International for the maintenance and data collection of traffic radar devices. According to a statement on the firm’s website, it was the first company in Qatar to introduce speed radars; and
- A separate agreement worth QR4.4 million was struck with Al Tanmiyah for information from traffic radars.
Finally, Austria-based Sail Labs Technology agreed to a QR2.5 million deal with the MOI to provide comprehensive media monitoring systems, the Milipol statement said.
Emir’s briefing
The homeland security event, which was held at the Doha Exhibition and Conference Center (DECC) over three days, usually takes place every two years.
The next one will be in October 2018, the MOI said on Twitter.
At the 2014 Milipol, the MOI went shopping for gear to the tune of nearly QR309 million.
This year’s event attracted more than 6,500 visitors from 103 countries.
Some 54 Qatar-based firms showed off their wares, and new nations representing gear this year included Algeria, Belize, Cyprus, Jordan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Pakistan and Uganda.
A total of 27 French companies were at the event, while firms from China, Germany, North America and the UK were also present.
Expert briefings and seminars during the exhibition covered issues including large event security, cyber threats, counter-terrorism response and crisis management.
Qatar’s Emir toured the final day of the expo with the Prime Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani.
He was briefed on the latest ways of securing industrial sites and transport and communications as well as the new developments in civil defense and combating crime, QNA reported.
One of the highlights for visitors to this year’s event was a McLaren 650Sin the livery of the Qatar Traffic Police.
Mawater
It was showcasing covert speed radar technology which can monitor traffic, and which had been trialled in Qatar over the summer.
