DUSHANBE, October 13, 2009, Asia-Plus — Dushanbe Mayor Mahmadsaid Ubaidulloyev met with His Highness the Aga Khan, the Spiritual Leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and Founder of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), here on October 12.
Shavkat Saidov, a spokesman for the Dushanbe mayor’s office, said that the sides had discussed cooperation between the Dushanbe mayor’s office and the AKDN, including the process of implementation of the Dushanbe Serena Hotel project. During the meeting it was noted that this world-class hotel will be finished in May 2010.
“In the course of the talks, the high guest noted that he supports the mayor’s proposal on construction of a modern high school in Dushanbe and charged the AKDN Tajikistan with providing assistance with designing and constructing the school,” Saidov said.
The Dushanbe Serena Hotel, a US$25million project whose 120 units will range from luxury rooms to long-stay apartments, will incorporate conference and shopping facilities, restaurants and a roof-top recreation centre and swimming pool. The hotel, to be managed by Tourism Promotion Services (a subsidiary of Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development) is being developed following a design from the award-winning architectural firm, ARCOP, a Montreal-based firm.
When completed, the Dushanbe Serena Hotel will join several Serena properties across the region to help strengthen tourism development in areas rich in cultural sites, physical attractions and economic opportunity. These include Serena units in Kabul, Afghanistan, and at Islamabad, Quetta, Faisalabad, Gilgit and Swat in Pakistan.
