Qatar Participates in Virtual South-South and Triangular Cooperation Seminar

Qatar Participates in Virtual South-South and Triangular Cooperation Seminar

Doha / Information Office / October 27

The State of Qatar participated Tuesday in a high-level seminar held virtually by the South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC) in Arab countries.

Assistant Director of the Department of International Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Shaheen Ali Al Kaabi represented the State of Qatar during the seminar.

Al Kaabi said that the State of Qatar is focused on enhancing cooperation between countries of the south, and added that it was a main pillar of the country's foreign policy. He also said that Qatar is keen to be a platform for the group and the United Nations to enhance international cooperation in the face of threats to international peace and stability, and to advance the role of law and to pursue development.

He stressed that the State of Qatar greatly values the agenda of cooperation among developing countries and multilateral action, noting that Qatar hosted the second South Summit of the Group of 77 and China in Doha back in 200. It also chaired the Group of 77 and China in 2014 at the 69th United Nations session, in addition to chairing the UNCTAD for a number of years.

He added that at the Arab level, the State of Qatar believes that enhancing cooperation between the region and other countries in the South will help achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

The Assistant Director of the International Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that in light of the current global circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the great challenges facing the Arab region, there is a need to increase and strengthen cooperation among the countries of the region, and to give cooperation in the Arab region great importance in order to overcome the major challenges imposed by the pandemic.

He added that in order to ensure the achievement of the goals set by the SSTC, and the achievement of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals in the Arab region, it is necessary to establish a special mechanism for the countries of the Arab region. He added that the first goal of the mechanism would be to provide a fair approach to all its actors to raise the level of exchange of expertise. He also said that the countries must establish channels to discuss the priorities of cooperation among the countries of the Arab region in the context of implementing the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

Al Kaabi said that many Arab countries are in desperate need of help in the different developmental fields such as ending poverty, food security, public-private partnerships, clean technology, economic growth, industrial innovation, and healthcare among other fields. He noted that the State of Qatar have supported many initiatives in the region through institutions like Silatech that help provide employment opportunities and vocational training to young people. The institutions helped provide close to half a million job opportunities in Sudan as well as 400,000 in Tunisia and Morocco. The Qatar Fund for Development also provided support $4 billion over the past eight years to support developmental efforts in the Arab world. Qatar Charity for its part carried out 10,000 developmental project with a total cost of $440 million over the past three years.

He expressed the State of Qatar's keenness to participate in the third South Summit in Uganda, adding that it will be an important opportunity to enhance cooperation. He stressed the State of Qatar's support of Uganda's efforts to ensure the success of the summit.