Senior Associate – Government Relations

Role Overview

Senior Associate – Government Relations at Aldar Properties, based in Abu Dhabi.

Role Purpose

Establish and maintain relationships with government authorities to secure necessary permits and licenses for development projects in a timely manner, and support the project management team in the successful delivery of major infrastructure, housing, and development initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

Permits & Approvals

• Process all required project development and construction permits through external government agencies.
• Follow up on reviews and comments from approving agencies.
• Ensure all required permits are obtained in a timely manner to prevent delays in project delivery schedule.
• Build strong stakeholder relations with focal persons in relevant government services to enable the PM team to avoid delays related to authority approvals.

Coordination & Compliance

• Ensure close coordination with project teams to secure permits from relevant external and internal entities, including Government Authorities across Abu Dhabi Emirate.
• Coordinate with project teams to assure that all ongoing project development and construction projects are conducted in line with the licenses and permits obtained.
• Monitor related government laws and regulations affecting the development of different projects.
• Highlight any changes or amendments to laws and regulations that might affect projects.

Assets Handover

• Assist in the validation of prepared documents by consultants and contractors for assets handover.
• Learn and maintain assets handover tracker and plan for each project.
• Coordinate and take a lead in communication and negotiation with local authorities for the assets handover process until signing assets handover agreements.
• Report any potential issues that could affect the schedule of assets handover.
• Process, coordinate, track, manage, and store documents relevant to assets handover for each project.

Technical & Stakeholder Support

• Develop technical understanding of infrastructure sub-disciplines including roads, wet utilities, and dry utilities.
• Support the collection, assimilation, and communication of government information in a timely and efficient manner.
• Attend to all critical issues to ensure services are delivered in the most effective manner.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor degree, preferably in public policy, government, or public administration.
• Strong knowledge of construction-related policies and permits application processes.
• Strong network of key Government entities representatives.

Skills & Competencies

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent oral and written English and Arabic.
• Excellent problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• Excellent planning and organization skills.

Additional Information

Performance is measured on timeliness of permits applications, effectiveness in permit and NOC approvals, Development and Portfolio Management satisfaction, timeliness in generating infrastructure designs, and the number of design defects recorded post-delivery.