Minor Hotels has announced the appointment of Ramine Behnam as vice president development for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Behnam’s prominent career in hospitality development, operations, consulting and asset management includes senior roles with JLL Middle East & Africa in Dubai and the M.A. Kharafi Group in development, acquisitions and asset management, based out of Cairo.

Prior to joining Minor Hotels, he held the position of director of development with Starwood Hotels and subsequently Marriott International – Middle East and Africa.

A French national, Behnam is also fluent in English, Arabic and Spanish and is based at Minor Hotels’ regional office in Dubai.

Commenting on the appointment, James Kaplan, senior vice president development, Minor Hotels, said: “We are delighted to welcome Ramine on board and look forward to working together, driving Minor Hotels’ growth in key destinations across Europe, Middle East and Africa.

“With over ten years of hospitality management and business development under his belt, Ramine brings a wealth of experience to the role and is a great asset to the company.”

Behnam will be responsible for continuing to drive strategic growth for Minor Hotels in key destinations across EMEA.

In addition to several hotel management agreements awaiting imminent signing, Minor Hotels currently has a strong pipeline of future properties under development in the region including in the UAE (Dubai, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah), Saudi Arabia, Oman, Lebanon, Tunisia, Morocco, Mauritius and the Maldives.

Minor is a hotel owner, operator and investor, currently with a portfolio of 163 hotels and resorts in 26 countries across Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Europe and South America.