This came in a statement delivered by HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the UN Sheikha Alya bint Ahmed bin Saif al-Thani at the ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council on the International Women's Day, which was held under the title 'Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda Through Partnerships: Women's Economic Inclusion and Participation as A Key to Building peace'.
The statement pointed out that Qatar's strategy to implement the UNSC Resolution is in line with the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030, expressing Qatar's belief in the need to strengthen and address the barriers that prevent the political and economic participation of women and girls in conflict resolution and post-conflict reconstruction, especially through initiatives that enable them to integrate.
The statement added that thanks to the leadership of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, Qatar protects women's participation in peace and security affairs at all levels.
It stressed that Qatar continues to work tirelessly to unleash opportunities to increase women's economic empowerment and their participation in the workforce to promote economic growth.
Also, the statement referred to Qatar's hosting on January 21-22, in partnership with Finland, Colombia, and the UN, the High-Level Global Conference on Youth-Inclusive peace Process, where the participants stressed the need to invest adequately in the efforts of young women peacebuilders, and to ensure that they have meaningful opportunities to contribute to economic recovery provisions in post-conflict peace agreements.
The statement underlined the critical importance of partnerships and funding, pointing to Qatar's contribution to funding many UN agencies and departments to implement the agenda.
The statement drew attention to the efforts of the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD), which prioritised the economic empowerment of women and girls in conflict and recovery situations, explaining that the QFFD focused, in its co-operation with strategic partners, on programmes such as:
* Women's participation in large and small economic projects alike
* Addressing structural barriers to their economic participation and resource control
* Sustainability programmes
* Microfinance support
* Job improvement and income generation for displaced women
* Strengthening education and social services in refugee camps, in addition to its focus on applying local economic models to provide employment and income opportunities to eradicate poverty.
It noted that in April 2021 the QFFD signed with the Digital Citizen Fund a grant agreement to finance a vocational training project for girls and women in Afghanistan, with a focus on business and digital expertise, praising the Silatech foundation, which supports young women in conflict or post-conflict situations through access to job opportunities, vocational training, technology platforms, and career guidance.
At the conclusion of its statement, Qatar affirmed its commitment to play its role in the full implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda and work with international organisations, academia, civil society, and the private sector to bring change that would preserve peace and gender equality.