Speakers during a ceremony, organised at Qatar University (QU) on Wednesday on the occasion of International Day of Women and Girls in Science, highlighted the efforts exerted by Qatar to enhance the role of girls and women in the fields of scientific research.

The event, organised by QU in collaboration of UNESCO Office to the GCC and Yemen and the National Commission for Education, Culture and Science, highlighted the most important programs adopted by Qatar University to promote the capabilities of female and male students in the field of scientific research and to attract them to enroll in scientific and applied disciplines.

Addressing the ceremony, Director of the UNESCO Office for the GCC and Yemen Dr. Anna Paolini praised the efforts exerted by the State of Qatar to enhance the role of women in areas of promoting science, technology and innovation, in order to support the development process in the country and achieve the objectives of Qatar National Vision 2030 and the Sustainable Development Agenda 2030.

Dr. Paolini noted the large gender gap in scientific research at the global level, referring to the statistics of the UNESCO Institute for Statistics for the year (2018) which indicate that only 28% of researchers in the world are women, and that 27% of countries in the world achieved parity in 2016, mainly in Central Asia and Latin America.

She added that very small percentage of women won Nobel Prizes in the fields of science (physics, chemistry, medicine...), calling for careful consideration of the reasons preventing women from advancing in these fields.

For her part, Secretary-General of the National Commission for Education, Culture and Science Dr. Hamda Al Sulaiti underlined Qatar's belief in the important role carried out by women in the community, side by side with men, in all fields of development, including science, aiming at achieving the development goals agreed internationally, as well as Qatar National Vision 2030.

She affirmed that the State of Qatar attaches great attention and provides unlimited support to promote the status of Qatari women in the field of science and scientific research and consolidate the foundations of scientific thinking among girls, referring to the programs and the specialized scholarships offered for female students to study the latest technological developments and explore the best scientific developments, as well as allocating scientific awards to the most prominent research projects and organizing and hosting many leading international conferences and initiatives aiming to spread the culture of scientific research among girls.

Dr. Al Sulaiti noted that the national legislations issued in the past years enhanced the rights of Qatari women and eliminated all aspects of discrimination, while the Qatar National Vision 2030 promoted the participation of women at the decision-making level in many fields such as education, health, economics, diplomatic corps and others.

What distinguishes the Qatari experience in the field of the advancement of women and girls is the holistic and integrated approach in dealing with women's issues, which stems from a firm conviction that separating women's issues from family and society issues leads to counterproductive results, she added.

She added that the advancement of women is also linked to the advancement of the health, education, economy and sciences, noting that all the plans development by the State for the development of these sectors included important programs to enhance the services provided to women and develop their participation in those sectors at all levels, as confirmed by Qatar Vision 2030.

Meanwhile, QU Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies Dr. Mariam Al Maadeed praised Qatar's keenness on advancing women and enhancing their rights and equality with men in various plans and strategies, noting that the State provided support and assistance to women, and opened doors for them to work and access opportunities to the highest positions.

She added that the State of Qatar gave women a prominent role in achieving Qatar National Vision 2030, and in return, the Qatari women proved their ability to serve the society and the country with all merit and commitment.

Dr. Al Maadeednoted the University's efforts in enhancing and promoting the role of women and building their capabilities, especially as female students constitute the largest proportion of the total number of students, which exceeds 76%, and the participation of girls and female faculty members in scientific research and higher studies is constantly increasing every year.

She added that the University's activity to enhance the capabilities of scientific research extended to schools through many distinct and targeted programs that seek to enable and develop national skills and encourage students to join scientific disciplines and participate in research and innovation.

The ceremony included a presentation of some successful experiences, including the experience of Dr. Buthaina Ali Al Mulla (from Sidra Medical and Research Centre and Hamad Medical Corporation), who achieved scientific and professional success, as well as a review of some successful university projects in the field of encouraging scientific research such as Al-Bairaq project and the Empower Generation Consortium project. (QNA)

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Nabeela

Content Writer

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