The Good the Bad and the Ugly

I remember the first time I flew into Qatar.  As we flew in over the flat featureless desert I wandered what I was getting myself into.  The war in Iraq had just started and here I was in the Middle East, arriving in a tiny country I had never heard off, looking for sponsorship for my racing catamaran Maiden II…… 

Getting off the plane was like walking into a furnace and you could actually feel the moisture being sucked out of your skin.   Doha looked like one big building site, which in effect it is.  I have previosuly spent long periods in Jordan as the guest of my friend HH King Hussein I, when Royal Jordanian Airlines sponsored Maiden, this place felt far removed from that wonderful country.

Qatar is neither one thing nor the other.  Once in Qatar you learn very quickly, from the Qataris themselves, that they are a people trying to find their place in the world whilst trying to walk a tightrope bewteen traditional Islam and the requirements of its new American masters who protect it from the rest of the Gulf as long as it does what it’s told.  It doesn’t have the hugely important and fascinating history of Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Oman or Saudi, the shiny new buildings and leisure facilities of Dubai, the business acumen of Abu Dhabi or the size and power of Iran. 

It does however, have liquid natural gas.  Not as much as the rest of the world has been led to believe, but enough for the moment.  The Qataris I spoke with admit that they hope that lots of money will make up for everything else.  Maybe in this brave new world of ‘money rules everything and everyone’ they really don’t need anything else.  We shall see.Another lesson quickly learned is that carefully hidden from the eyes of the western world and Qatar’s hapless immigrants, there is a delicate but constant power struggle going on between most powerful players of the Royal Family.   All gossip amongst Qatar's tiny indigenous population, revolves around money, power and whispered bloodless coups.   The result of each power game dictates their never ending and constantly shifting allegiences.  

We will look at the key players later on but suffice to say that the four most important are The Emir, His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, his consort, Her Highness Sheikha Mozha bint Nasser Al Missned, The Heir Apparent HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the Foreign Minister HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al THani.  Let’s hope for the sake of everyone in Qatar and all future foreign investors that Sheikha Mozha wins influence over the future of Qatar in this power struggle and that her husband can gain control of some of the nastier elements of the Qatar Royal Family.

So, before we look at the bad and ugly let’s have a look at the good!

Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Nasser Al-Missned (موزة نصور المسود)

is the second and most influential of the three wives of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar. She is the daughter of Nasser Abdullah Al-Missned.She graduated from the University of Qatar in 1986 with a BA in Sociology and holds several posts in Qatar and internationally:  

Chairperson of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community

Development    President of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs    Vice-

President of the Supreme Education Council   

UNESCO's Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education  

She has seven children, five sons and two daughters:  

Sheikh Tamim Hamad Al-Thani, the current heir apparent.   

 Jassim Hamad Al-Thani   

 Joaan Hamad Al-Thani   

Khalifa Hamad Al-Thani   

Mohammed Hamad Al-Thani   

Al-Mayassa Hamad Al-Thani   

Hind Hamad Al-Thani

The most important role allocated to Her Highness by her husband His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Emir of Qatar, is ‘Chairperson of The Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development’.  This is a private, chartered, non-profit organization in the state of Qatar, founded in 1995 by His Highness. Guided by the principle that a nation's greatest resource is the potential of its people, the Qatar Foundation aims to develop that potential through a network of centers devoted to progressive education, research and community welfare.

I would say that the principle reason for the huge success of the Qatar Foundation, and consequently it’s flagship projct Education City, is the commitment, dedication and vision of Her Higness.   It is Her Highness that has brought to Education City five branch campuses of major American universities;   

Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUQ). Since 1998, VCUQ has offered students the opportunity to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in communication design, fashion design or interior design through a four-year curriculum.  

Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q). The Medical College was established by Cornell University in 2001 and offers a two-year Pre-medical Program followed by the four-year Medical Program leading to a Doctor of Medicine degree.   

Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ). TAMUQ was established in 2003 and offers undergraduate degrees in chemical, electrical, mechanical and petroleum engineering.   

Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q). CMU-Q has since 2004 offered undergraduate degrees in business and computer science programs.     

Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Qatar). SFS-Qatar has, since 2005, offered a four-year program leading to a bachelor's degree in foreign service.      

Others are expected to join in the coming years from various parts of the world.Her Highness is also creating a string of knowledge-based organisations at Education City, including the Qatar Science & Technology Park which will house technology-based companies and entrepreneurs, and link the universities with industry. By the end of the current decade there will be an academic medical center which aims to reach the highest standards in patient care, medical training and research. Its initial specialization will be in women's and children's medicine. Located on the outskirts of Doha, the capital of Qatar, Education City covers 14 million square meters and houses educational facilities from school age to research level and branch campuses of some of the world's leading universities.

Education City aims to be the center of educational excellence in the region, instructing students in fields of critical importance to the GCC region. It is also conceived of as a forum, where universities share research and facilities, not only with each other but also by forging relationships with businesses and institutions in public and private sectors.There are also centers based at Education City which are focused on science and research. These include: 

RAND-Qatar Policy Institute (RQPI). This is a partnership between the RAND Corporation and Qatar Foundation. RQPI analyzes complex policy problems and helps implement enduring solutions for clients across the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia.  

Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP). Qatar Foundation is investing $300 million in building a state-of-the-art facility at Education City, comprising 45,000 square meters of office and laboratory space. QSTP aims to fuel Qatar’s knowledge economy by encouraging companies from around the world to develop and commercialize their technology in Qatar, and by helping entrepreneurs to launch start-up technology businesses.  

Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF). QNRF aims to support research that is in the national interest. It was established to provide opportunities for researchers at all levels, from students to professionals, in the private, public, and academic sectors. The first of its funding programs, the Undergraduate Research Experience Program, was launched in 2006.

Her Highness is also the driving force behind Qatar Foundation’s foray into broadcasting; Doha Debates is a public forum for dialogue modeled on the Oxford Union debates and Al Jazeera Children's Channel which aims to strike a balance between education and entertainment.

The Qatar Foundation has also formed partnerships that are located at Education City.  Qatar Foundation provides management and support services For Al Shaqab stud. Fitch studio, an extension of the Fitch London studio, has been established in order to develop the Fitch presence in the Gulf and Middle East region. Future Education City projects planned by Qatar Foundation include Sidra Medical and Research Center. Scheduled to open in late 2010, Sidra will offer clinical care, medical training and biomedical research. Sidra will be the primary teaching venue for Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, and they will also be involved in the research. Working with Sidra and Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar will be Hamad Medical Corporation, the major public health care provider in Doha.

www.qf.edu.qa

Quest joined forces with VCUQ when we asked their students to enter a competition to design the Award for Courage for the Oryx Quest 05. 

Here are the three runners up

and the winning design

and coverage

The winner was flown by Quest to London where she helped make her design into reality with the design team at William Asprey's William & Sons