Doha: Under the patronage of HE Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, the Ministry of Labour (MoL) on Tuesday launched the 2026 Qatar Nationalisation Award for the Private Sector. The event was attended by HE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defense Affairs Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan Al-Thani, along with several ministers, senior officials, and leading representatives of the private sector.
According to Qatar News Agency, in his keynote address at the inauguration ceremony, HE Minister of Labour, Dr. Ali bin Samikh Al Marri, stated that the launch of the Qatar Nationalisation Award in the private sector aligns with the vision of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, emphasizing the importance of human capital as the nation's true wealth. He highlighted the need to develop education and training systems, prepare and qualify national talent, and integrate them into the workforce based on achievement, competence, and performance.
Dr. Al Marri explained that the MoL is committed to enhancing work environments and promoting active participation of Qatari talent in the private sector through policies and programmes aimed at increasing national workforce participation. He noted that the issuance of the Private Sector Nationalisation Law in 2024 marks a significant turning point, offering a comprehensive legal framework to address challenges and provide incentives to enhance the nationalisation system's effectiveness.
He further mentioned that by the end of 2024, the MoL launched the National Strategy for an Effective and Highly Productive Workforce 2024-2030. This strategy aims to raise the proportion of Qataris employed in the private sector from 17 percent to 20 percent, supported by approximately 15,400 Qataris. Dr. Al Marri emphasized the Ministry's successful employment of 7,861 Qatari citizens and children of Qatari women in various productive sectors, highlighting Qatar's belief in competence as a path to turning challenges into opportunities.
HE the Minister of Labour reiterated that the establishment of the Qatar Nationalisation Award in the private sector underscores the wise vision of HH the Amir, who issued a decree in 2025 to promote competition among private-sector institutions, recognize national talent, and honour outstanding institutions. The Minister stressed the private sector's strategic role in raising national workforce participation and contributing to a strong national economy.
The Qatar Nationalisation Award in the private sector includes categories for Institutions and Individuals. The Award recognizes institutions excelling in recruitment, training, support for nationalisation efforts, and talent retention policies. Core institutional awards will be given in areas such as national talent recruitment, best onboarding programmes for university and secondary school graduates, among others.
Individual awards will acknowledge Qatari citizens and children of Qatari women for their contributions to workforce nationalisation. Sectoral individual awards will be given to 27 winners across nine sectors, recognizing the best Qatari employee in each sector based on professional levels such as future national talent, outstanding national competence, and leadership excellence.
The launch of the first edition of the Award reflects the MoL's dedication to implementing top directives, organizing the labour market, increasing national workforce participation, and enhancing the private sector's role in human capital development in line with Qatar National Vision 2030.