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Her Highness Sheikha Mozah bin Nasser Al-Thani “We want our people to have a stake in their country, and we are working to ensure that leaders emerge from each and every Qatari generation”
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er name has been synonymous with change, especially for women in the Arab world. She is seen as the face of the modern Arab woman, one who strives ahead in the field of education and youth empowerment. HH Sheikha Mozah is not unknown internationally too. As the founder of the Shafallah Center for Children with Special Needs, she was awarded the Spirit of Leadership award from Best Buddies International in 2008 for her advocacy on behalf of children with disabilities. In 2007, she was awarded the prestigious Chatham House Award which is given annually to a leading international statesperson who has made a significant contribution to the improvement of international relations in the previous year. Also in 2007, Forbes magazine named her as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world, and The Times of London named her one of the 25 most influential business leaders in the Middle East. Two years ago, HH Sheikha Mozah initiated an Arab movement, Silatech, with an ambitious objective of creation and development of employment opportunities for the youth. Silatech has now ongoing programmes in Syria, Yemen and Morocco. Under her active involvement, the education sector in Qatar has received a major boost promising a brighter future for the nation. Her Highness is Chairperson of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, which under her leadership launched Education City in 2003, bringing various international university communities to the Qatar campus to provide innovative educational and research opportunities through leading local and international educational institutions. Her pioneering work for education is not limited to Qatar. In 2003, she was appointed Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education by UNESCO, by which she has been actively promoting various international projects to improve the quality and accessibility of education worldwide. “Qatar’s most valuable natural resource is its people,” believes Her Highness, who is also involved in the upliftment of less-privileged individuals in Qatar, for which the Social Development Centre has been set up to provide training and skills-building.
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