Falcon Group – A Leading Group in Iraq – Celebrates 10th Anniversary

ERBIL — On April 26, 2014, Falcon Group held a mammoth gala to celebrate its tenth anniversary. Over three hundred business and civic leaders, government dignitaries, and international guests gathered at a dinner reception held in the luxurious Divan Hotel in Erbil.

Among the guests were Nawzad Hadi, Governor of Erbil province, who spoke on behalf of the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Nechirvan Barzani, Kurdistan Regional Government Minister of Interior, Karim Sinjari and US Consul General, Joseph Pennington.

A major feature of the event was the announcement of, and signing ceremony for,the upgrading of the Marriott Hotel, already under construction at Empire World, to the status of a Five Star  JW Marriott Hotel, as well as announcing a new Courtyard by Marriott Hotel soon to be constructed by Falcon Group near Massif.

Both will be major boons to the recognition of Kurdistan and particularly the city of Erbil as a major business and tourist destination in the Middle East.

Of the upgraded JW Marriott Five Star Hotel to be part of Empire World, Peshraw Majid Agha, chairman of Falcon Group, predicted: “This will be one of the greatest hotels in the Middle East.”

Addressing the gala, Peshraw Majid Agha highlighted Falcon Group’s largest real estate project in Iraq, Empire World, which was established in 2007 with a projected investment of US $2.7 billion. Empire World consists of 88 towers and 300 villas comprising residential apartments; business towers; leisure facilities; a mall; and the jewel in the crown of Empire World,the upgraded JW Marriott Five Star Hotel and Conference Center.

Speaking of the project on behalf of Marriott International, Alex Kyriakidis, President of Middle East & Africa of Marriott International, praised the vision of Falcon Group’s leadership, which made this project possible:

“Here you have a vision: a vision to create destination, not just a hotel, and there is a huge difference between the two. Imagine a destination of 45,000 square meter;s imagine a luxurious JW Marriott Hotel for transient and short stay guests; imagine next to it Marriott executive apartments for the long stay guest who wishes to stay for weeks, months here in Erbil working. Imagine also if you would a substantial conference facility, seven food and beverage outlets of different cuisines from around the world, a world-renowned spa, and residential complex; so what you have is a destination within Erbil. Now the economic activity that a project like this creates is huge… crucially putting Erbil on the global hospitality map. This is what this project will do; this is what the vision of our partner is all about”.

Honored at the gala were many of the outstanding managers and employees of Falcon Group who have been with the company since its founding ten years ago. These include: Mohammed Mosawi, who is responsible for heading the security teams in Baghdad and the south; Gary Cavender, General Manager of Falcon Security; Damawand Dizayi, general manager of Empire World, specially honored as “the guy who built Empire World”; Chapuk Majid Agha, brother of the chairman, who is Gary Cavender’s deputy; and Mandub Mahmud, in charge of sales.

Others honored at the gala who have been with Falcon Group for ten years were: Soran Ismail, Sabah Aziz, Fouad Hassan, Zmnako Salim, Bahzad Ahmad, Imad Ahmad, Hazha Othman, Subhi Kaka Shin, Karwan Aziz, Botan Mahmood, Umed Umadi, Hemn Umadi, Sami Sleman, Sherzad Khalid, Aqid Karim, Abbas Hassan, Hayder Mhi, Anas Mhi, Muhammad Mahdi, Basil Ido Said, Hussein Abdi, Karwan Said, and Chato Jawhar.

Speaking of the significance of the occasion, the chairman of Falcon Group, Peshraw Majid Agha said: “The ten years were highly successful. We started with only one company in 2004, and now we have 18 companies. Falcon Group companies work across Iraq. Falcon Group has emerged as one of the best security companies in Iraq, a leading oilfield services company in Iraqi Kurdistan and the vision is to become the best construction company and an agricultural powerhouse. So, we are successful and we are also doing our bit to rebuild Iraq. We embrace Iraq with the Empire World project — the largest real-estate project in Iraq — that has a budget of 2.7 Billion Dollars.”

 Peshraw Majid Agha also emphasized the importance of “developing the local products and abilities” of Iraqis in order to “keep all the direct and indirect benefits inside our country.”

Ending the evening, Peshraw Majid Agha, expressed his appreciation to all the guests, especially the councillors, businessmen, and officials of the Kurdistan Regional Government, saying: “we are showing our seriousness in working for the development of Kurdistan. I hope we all can feel the national responsibility in Kurdistan… because the only way of success is freedom and democracy. Thank you very much and welcome all”.