The State of Qatar announced that it has provided foreign aid worth approximately $4.8 billion since 2020, 90% of which was allocated to least developed countries around the world. Relevant authorities explained that 64% of this aid was consistent with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in the areas of poverty reduction, health, and education.
This announcement comes at a time when least developed countries are facing increasing challenges due to economic crises, conflicts, and the repercussions of climate change. The Qatar National Planning Council affirmed that these contributions reflect Doha’s ongoing commitment to supporting UN efforts to achieve comprehensive development. It also indicated that this aid falls within the framework of Qatar National Vision 2030 and its third development strategy (2024-2030), which aims to align national policies with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. As part of its international initiatives, Qatar sponsored the Education Above All program, launched in 2012 at the initiative of Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. The program has succeeded in providing quality, equitable, and inclusive basic education to more than 10 million children and youth in more than 60 countries, including conflict-affected areas such as Yemen, Syria, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Somalia. The program adopts an integrated approach that links education, protection, and social and economic empowerment to ensure sustainable impact.
Qatar has also launched several educational initiatives, such as “Educate a Child” and “Protecting Education in Conflict,” which aim to improve the quality of education by improving curricula, training teachers, and expanding school infrastructure.
At the international level, Doha hosted the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries in March 2023, with the attendance of more than 5,000 participants, including heads of state and government, UN officials, civil society leaders, and representatives of major corporations. The conference, held in the Qatari capital, launched the “Doha Action Programme” for the period 2022-2031, which included six key priorities, most notably investing in human capital, harnessing technology and innovation, promoting trade, financing for development, debt relief, and addressing climate change, in addition to strengthening international partnerships to achieve development goals.
During the conference, Qatar announced a pledge of $60 million, including $10 million to support the implementation of the Doha Action Programme and $50 million to assist least developed countries in achieving their national priorities.
In addition, Qatar continued its relief efforts by sending humanitarian, medical, and food aid to affected areas. It dispatched planes carrying humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, the most recent of which was a plane carrying 86 tons of medical and food aid in cooperation with the Qatar Fund for Development and the Qatar Red Crescent.
These steps are part of Qatar’s foreign policy, which seeks to enhance the stability of fragile societies through long-term development and humanitarian programs, at a time when the world is facing accumulated crises such as the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, armed conflicts, and climate crises.
