Alia Saleh
Chief Financial Officer, ISG Middle East, UAE
Alia is the Chief Financial Officer at ISG Middle East, a strategic finance leader with over 15 years of experience across the Middle Eastern, European, and Asian markets. A Big 4 trained and qualified Chartered Accountant (FCCA), she brings expertise in corporate finance management, financial reporting, FP&A, treasury, governance, and risk management. Alia plays a key role in supporting ISG’s commitment to sustainable construction and embedding ESG principles into financial strategies, helping drive responsible growth.
1.How can companies in real estate manage the pressure to balance profitability with their ESG and CSR commitments?
As CFO of a UAE contracting firm, I’m often asked whether “green” means “red ink.” It doesn’t. Global data from CBRE and MSCI show ESG-rated portfolios matching—or beating—traditional real estate returns over the past eight years.
Why? Operating costs fall when you track energy, water, and waste; valuation rises because investors and tenants will pay for resilient assets. The catch is intent. Bolting CSR onto a project after tender is pure PR and rarely survives value-engineering. Embedding it early—life-cycle costing, solar-ready roofs, smart-metering—keeps margins intact and shields cash flow from volatile utility prices. Boards worry about payback; for basic retrofits the global median is < 3 years, while in Saudi residential stock it’s under 12 months. That said, most performance studies come from listed REITs in mature markets, not private GCC developers, so returns might lag during our learning curve.
Still, regulators are moving fast (EU CSRD, UAE Net-Zero 2050), and capital will follow disclosure. The real risk is inertia. Profit and purpose aren’t a trade-off—they’re a timing difference. Finance teams that model carbon the way we model cash will win both.
2. How can real estate developers collaborate with communities to ensure that their projects align with broader social responsibility and sustainability goals?
Steel and concrete change skylines, but social licence keeps them standing.
Globally, developers that co-create with communities see faster approvals and lower litigation costs. The playbook is simple: listen early, act visibly, measure honestly. In London’s King’s Cross, Argent formed a resident advisory board that shaped public spaces and retail mix—footfall is now 25 % above forecast.
On my Dubai sites we mirror that with “majlis” forums, opening the drawings to neighbours and subcontractors before piling begins; design tweaks have cut post-handover complaints by 40 %. Sponsoring local events or volunteering is not window-dressing if it links back to project KPIs—think apprenticeship targets, SME procurement quotas, or community Wi-Fi. Digital helps: a blog or WhatsApp channel that publishes noise levels and traffic diversions in real time builds trust faster than any glossy brochure.
Bias watch: engagement costs time; tight programmes tempt shortcuts. Yet Deloitte’s 2024 survey shows every US$1 spent on stakeholder engagement saves US$6-10 in delays. Community ROI is real—and bankable.
3. In the Middle East, how can property developers incorporate responsible sourcing and sustainable materials into their projects, considering the region's climate and resources?
Concrete still rules our skylines, yet materials can make—or break—an ESG scorecard. The UAE market is pivoting: recycled aggregates, low-E glass, and bio-based insulation are moving from pilots to tender specs. Supply-chain due diligence is now part of our pre-qualification of vendors, not a last-minute questionnaire.
Practical steps:
1. Source regionally recycled steel from Abu Dhabi or fly-ash cement from Oman cuts freight emissions.
2. Embed life-cycle assessment (LCA) in BOQs; suppliers providing Environmental Product Declarations win tie-breaks.
3. Bundle energy, water, and material metrics in one dashboard to avoid silo decisions that game the numbers. Financially, Emirates Green Building Council estimates 20-30 % energy savings for compliant builds, with typical paybacks under five years—comfortably within most debt tenors.
Bias watch: premiums fluctuate; green insulation can cost +15 % today but drop as scale grows. Contractors who lock in volume agreements will lead the price curve. Responsible sourcing isn’t just good optics; it future-proofs assets against carbon tariffs and obsolescence.
My takeaway as CFO: treat every PO as a sustainability instrument—the ledger will reward you later.