Advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dr. Majed bin Mohammad Al Ansari participated in a workshop on “Qatar and the Least Developed Countries” organized by the Center for International Policy Research with the participation of a number of specialists and researchers, on the occasion of the Fifth United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries that is being held in Doha.
The workshop reviewed Qatar’s developmental and humanitarian assistance to the least developed countries and discussed Qatar’s contributions to issues of disaster relief and conflict resolution as major obstacles to the prosperity of the least developed countries.
In his speech, the Spokesperson said that certain initiatives and tangible results are expected to be announced at the conference to help address the challenges of the least developed countries, pointing out that the Doha Program of Action is an ambitious document that sets a model for a development compact to support sustainable development in the least developed countries.
He explained that the Doha Program of Action covers six key areas of action: investing in people in least developed countries, harnessing the power of science, technology and innovation to address multidimensional vulnerability and achieving sustainable development goals, supporting structural transformation as an engine for prosperity, promoting the participation of the least developed countries in international trade and regional integration, facing climate change and environmental degradation, recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and building resilience to future shocks for risk-informed sustainable development, and mobilizing international solidarity and revitalizing global partnerships and innovative tools and mechanisms.
Dr. Al Ansari said that it was agreed on a set of outputs in the current action program, which is the establishment of an online university (via the Internet), a system to encourage investment and maintain food stocks, and a mechanism for building resilience and mitigating crises, in addition to facilities to support graduation in the least developed countries.
He stated that the Doha Program of Action sets other important goals such as enabling fifteen additional LDCs to achieve graduation standards and doubling the shares of exports and aid for trade exchange with these countries. While LDCs bear the main responsibility in their development process, development partners must ensure that these countries receive the required level of support to achieve these goals, he added.
He considered that the participation at the highest level in the Doha Conference indicates the strong commitment and solidarity with the development efforts in the 46 weakest countries in the world, stressing that supporting these countries will not only contribute to their sustainable growth, but will also contribute to prosperity, stability, security and peace at the global and regional levels, in a way that achieves 2030 Agenda targets.
Dr. Al Ansari pointed out that the State of Qatar has its own humanitarian diplomacy that includes elements of humanitarian and development policies, mediation and conflict resolution methods, and that it is currently considered a major player in working for the future of the least developed countries over the next ten years and beyond.
The Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that geopolitical developments and long-term conflicts in various parts of the world worsened the condition of the least developed countries, and said that a huge wave of debt threatens today to dump these countries.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs