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Ministry of Foreign Affairs Organizes Seminar on Female Empowerment in Humanitarian, Development and Peace Fields

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Organizes Seminar on Female Empowerment in Humanitarian, Development and Peace Fields

Doha / Information Office /  March 14

HE Director of the Human Rights Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Faisal bin Abdullah Al Henzab affirmed Qatar's keenness on empowering women and providing support and an environment that would enhance their political, civil, social, economic and cultural rights, noting that this keenness was reflected in Qatar National Vision 2030 and in national development strategies 2011-2016 and 2018-2022.

This came in a speech by HE Ambassador Al Henzab during the opening of a seminar entitled: 'Empowerment of Women in Humanitarian, Development and Peace,' organized by the Department of Human Rights at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the Canadian Embassy, as part of International Women's Day.

HE the Ambassador pointed out that the national legislation issued in recent years reflected the state's increasing interest in promoting and protecting women's rights, eliminating discrimination between them and men, and establishing the rules of equality between both in various fields. He referred to Amiri Decree No. 22 of 2017, which saw four women joined the Shura Council and doubled the number of Qatari women joining the judiciary, the public prosecution and the diplomatic corps.

The State of Qatar had affirmed its full commitment to implement its obligations under the United Nations' Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and to cooperate fully with the Committee and other international and regional mechanisms, HE the Ambassador added.

He highlighted the State's launch of several initiatives at the regional and international levels, such as Silatech, which since its establishment in 2008 has contributed to the employment of about 1,000,000 young men and women and aims to provide 2,000,000 jobs by 2020 within the Arab world. He also pointed out Education Above All, a global initiative that includes four international programs, Educate A Child, Al Fakhoora, Protecting Education in Insecurity and Conflict (PEIC) and Reach Out to Asia (ROTA), which contribute to many children's access to education.

HE the Ambassador noted Qatar's support of the Charlevoix Declaration on the provision of quality education for girls and pledged to provide education for 1,000,000 girls by 2021 during HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani's participation in the Leaders Dialogue round table entitled: Charlevoix Declaration on Quality Education for Girls, Adolescent Girls and Women in Developing Countries, at the invitation of HE the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly during its 73rd session.

HE the Ambassador underlined the State of Qatar's committed role in promoting and protecting women's rights and empowerment at the regional and international level. The country provided financial support to many international initiatives, including USD 90,000 to support main resources to the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, USD 100,000 for the study on women, peace and security, as well as the publication of the book 'Story: Celebration of Leading Women in the United Nations,' which documents the contributions of the UN's leading women in strengthening peace and security efforts. He stressed that the State of Qatar will spare no effort to continue its efforts to empower women at all national, regional and international levels.

HE the Ambassador of Canada to the State of Qatar Stefanie McCollum praised the organization of the seminar.

The seminar, which was moderated by the Director of the United Nations Center for Human Rights Training and Documentation for Southwest Asia and the Arab Region Dr. Abdulsalam Sayed Ahmed, and was attended by a number of ambassadors accredited to the State and members of the diplomatic corps.

The seminar was also moderated by Director General of the Qatar Red Crescent Relief and Development Sector Noura Al Dosari, Secretary General of the Qatar National Committee for Education, Culture and Science Dr. Hamda Hassan Al Sulaiti, Chairperson of Qatar Women's Sports Committee Lulwa Al Marri, and Family Affairs Department, Ministry of Administrative Development, Social Reem Alajmi.