Qatar Foundation for Combating Human Trafficking, Al-Qaradawi Centre Sign MoU

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - Qatar Foundation for Combating Human Trafficking and the Al-Qaradawi Centre for Islamic Moderation and Renewal have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which aims at establishing bilateral relations of cooperation and enhancing efforts to combat trafficking in human beings.
The MoU was signed by Director General of Qatar Foundation for Human Trafficking Combating Maryam Al-Maliki and Al Qaradawi Centre Director Dr Mohammed Khalifa Hassan.
According to the MoU, the two sides have agreed to exchange experience and ways to improve cooperation in the field of combating trafficking in human beings.
The two sides also agreed to cooperate on research and religious scientific studies at theoretical and practical levels.
The four -year agreement would help the community implement programmes to raise awareness of the issue and reduce human trafficking at the local, regional and international levels.
Director General of Qatar Foundation for Human Trafficking Combating explained that that human trafficking is a transnational crime, noting the community's social responsibility to address this phenomenon. (QNA)

Joint Committee for Food Inspection Imposes Temporary Ban on Russian Meat

Doha, May 04 (QNA) -Qatar's Joint Committee for Food Inspection has recommended to impose a temporary ban on the import of cow , sheep and gazelles' chilled and forzen meat and their products from Russia owing to the spread of the Foot-and-Mouth disease (FMD) .
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Joint Committee for Food Inspection held under the chairmanship of director of the public health department at the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) dr.Sheikh mohamed bin hamad bin jassim al thani.
The meeting was also attended by representatives of the concerned parties from the ministry of municipality and urban planning , the ministry of business and trade and the ministry of environment.
During the meeting, the said committee members approved the recommendations adopted by the work team to study the voluntary validity period of some foodstuffs and agreeing to extend the validity period of tahina , a thick sauce made of sesame oil for another year as per the scientific research forwarded in this regard and the extending the oils'validity period according to the gulf standards specifications.
The aforesaid committee also abbrogated the procedures for the ratification of the certificates of origin, commercial invoices, documents and the attached documents on part of the state's embassies and consulates abroad for goods exchanged among the Arab member states in the Greater Arab Free Trade Organisation according to the cabinet's decision No. (7) of 2010. (QNA)

Tamgho Ready to Please the Crowd in Doha Return

Doha , May 04 (QNA) - World and European indoor champion Teddy Tamgho looks forward to pleasing the Qatari crowd at the inaugural IAAF Diamond League event in Doha, where he set the first of his world indoor Triple Jump records.
"I am extremely happy to come back here. That s where my career really started to progress so I decided to start my season here. The crowd in Doha at the world indoor championships last year was magnificent and I hope to perform well on Friday," said the 21-year old Frenchman before heading for a practice session at the Qatar Sports Club warm-up track.
Tamgho landed at 17.90 in his sixth and last attempt to break the world indoor record and claim his first global title in Doha in March 2010.
The young Frenchman arrived in the Qatari capital on Sunday after fruitful training camps in the sand of Alicante, southern Spain, and two weeks in the southern French beach resort of Boulouris, under the guidance of his coach, Cuba s nine-time World and 2000 Olympic Long Jump champion Ivan Pedroso.
"We are training well with Pedroso. We will peak at the right time, but we are ready to jump well here in Doha. Pedroso and I have built up a great affinity. He is like a tutor for me and I learn from his vast experience," he added.
Last winter, he improved his global indoor mark twice on home soil, first at the National Championships (17.91) and then at the European Championships final (17.92) in Paris.
On Friday, the young Frenchman will start his Diamond League trophy defence at the Qatar Sports Club stadium against top men like Cuba s 2009 World Championships bronze medallist Alexis Copello, who won the Diamond League in Doha last year, Romania s 2004 Olympic runner-up Marian Oprea and Bahamas 2003 World and 2008 Olympic bronze medallist Leevan Sands.
He believes meetings like Doha, Lausanne and Monaco are fundamental part of his preparation for the World Championships in Daegu.
After landing at 17.98 in New York outdoors last year, Tamgho is the strongest candidate to become the third man in history to break the 18-meter barrier.
"The 18 meters is a matter of time. It could happen early or at the end of the season. They are in my legs. I have to patient and the record will arrive any time. I am not in a hurry," he concluded.(QNA)

Ashghal to Open Al Zubara and Al Huwaila Interchanges

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - The public works authority announced the opening of another extension of the Doha North Road as it will open 4 lanes in each direction between Al Zubara Interchange and Al Huwaila Interchange on Saturday, May 7.
Ashghal will also open the completed road between Al Huwaila Interchange and Ain Sinan/Al Ghashamya Area by the end of this May. In addition to this, Ashghal announced it will complete the final part of the Doha North Road by the end of next June and as far as the Um slal interchange is concerned, Ashghal will finalize the ongoing work there by the end of next August.
Ashghal said it will give much consideration for other elements of the services delivered including the beatification and clearance of debris of its completed work while adhering to its strategic partners requirements. It is worth mentioning that Ashghal had opened the 20KM stretch of road between Al Khoor Interchange and Al Zubara Interchange. (QNA)



Financial Thought Leaders Summit Begins in Doha

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - A two-day Financial Though Leaders Summit was opened here today to discuss various issues including the changing landscape of investor relations, regulatory trends and issues affecting small cap companies, project financing, capital raising, IPO trends, mergers and acquisitions, and the shifting trend of taxes in the region.
Speaking at the opening session, HE Sheikh Nawaf Bin Nasser Bin Khaled Al Thani presented management styles of family owned companies: "Family owned businesses happen to be run very differently from listed companies. The different ownership structure for both types of company provides for different management, leadership styles, and of course, different levels of risk tolerance. Family members in a firm leadership have a positive impact on the performance of a company; however this can prove to be quite a challenge to senior management in such firms."
He discussed the role of the leadership body within a company and outlined the commonalities between both family-owned and publicly owned business. Towards the end of his address, he summarised: "I firmly believe that the future is very bright for Qatar and our focus should lie on exceptional management, and especially superior financial management, that will enable us to weather off any upcoming challenges, while maintaining a strong platform for growth and expansion."
Following the opening, CEO of Doha Bank Group R. Seetharaman delivered a keynote on the transformation of leadership in upcoming years. When asked about the role of CEOs, Mr. Seetharaman shared: "CEOs have to spend more time understanding the changes affecting external environment conditions as it is significantly impacting the modern business. CEOs develop their new strategies in line with the changing external environment conditions. The key factors affecting the external environment in financial services include globalisation, consumerism, regulation framework and cutting edge technologies."
The summit continued with an address by Adam Lomas, Director of Learning and Research, QFBA. He educated the audience on the importance of experience, passion and emotional intelligence as key elements of leadership. Lomas highlighted that the right time to be a leader is: "When it feels right; when you can look in the mirror and accept what you are doing; when feedback is something to look forward to and when you could have done something for yourself but you did it for someone else."
The first edition of the Financial Thought Leaders Summit continued with a panel discussion on 'Learning from the Gurus'. The afternoon featured sessions on: The changing landscape of investor relations, regulatory trends and issues affecting small cap companies, project financing, capital raising, IPO trends, mergers and acquisitions, and the shifting trend of taxes in the region. (QNA)

Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar Celebrates Graduation of 31 Physicians

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - Weill Cornell Medical College celebrated on Wednesday the graduation of 31 physicians crossed the stage to receive their U.S. medical degrees. The new physicians number 18 women and 13 men. Qataris are the largest national group with in the graduating class, and the graduates on whole represent 16 nationalities.
Family members and WCMC-Q faculty reflected with Cornell's leadership and students on the many achievements over the past six years and the promise of this class' future impact on health care.
"Congratulations to the class of 2011 of WCMC-Q" said Dr. Mohammad Fathy Saoud, President Of Qatar Foundation. "We Applaud Their Determination and hard work. Their accomplishments and the increasing size of the graduating class are evidence that we are making real progress toward our goal of building a knowledge-based society in Qatar. As they move ahead in the medical profession. they take our commitment to excellence in education and research with them beyond our borders, out into the world"
"Our graduate's achievements over the past six years inspire awe and foreshadow the deep impression they will make on humanity in to the future," said Dr. Javaid Sheikh, dean of WCMC-Q. "In addition to personal achievements, as a class they were able to accomplish so much more, traveling to developing nations to serve communities in need, and collaborating with Hamad Medical Corporation, the supreme council of Health and Reach Out to Asia, locally, to institute local programs that have and will positively impacted countless lives.
"The spirit of collaboration is alive in our students and has been exemplified by our dedicated faculty and staff as well as the Qatar foundation and all of our partners, to whom we express our deepest gratitude," Dean Sheikh continued.
"I would like to once again acknowledge the leadership and support of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, and HH Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser, chairperson of the Qatar Foundation, said Cornell President David Skorton, MD. "They have been visionary in their aspirations for the people of Qatar and most; generous in their commitment to Weill Cornell Medical College Qatar and our partners in Education City."

Qatar Hosts Second Revolutionary Poetry Festival

Doha, May 04 (QNA) -The two-day second revolutionary poetry festival, organized by the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, will open here on Sunday to commemorate the Tunisian revolution.
Three Tunisian poets will take part in the first night of the festival, which will be held at Qatar National Theatre, namely Khalid Al-Waghlani, Mohamed Amin bin Ali and Mabrouk Al-Sayyari. Other three Tunisian poets namely Jamal Al-Saliei, Abdul Nasser Al-Ou'aini and Bilal Buaani Al-Sayfi will take part in the second night. They will be accompanied by a Tunisian musical troupe and Tunisian renowned singer Amal Al-Hamrouni. (QNA)

Mowasalat Inaugurates New Doha Branch for Driving Training

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - Mowasalat Company announced it has inaugurated the Doha Branch of its Transportation Training and Development Center (KTTDC) and the Driving School. The new branch represents a new step towards the completion of the proliferation series aimed to provide the highest level of Service everywhere in the country, a company statement said.
The Doha Branch is concerned with the admission, registration and licensing of trainees, registration as well as organizing courses in defensive driving and other training courses on safe driving and emergency vehicle driving. In addition, the customer care provided through the Q-MATIC system is the first of its kind in the country s training schools.
The training activities in Mowasalat are aimed to provide training services through instructors who are fully qualified by the best local and international certification bodies, such as Smith and City & Guilds in the UK. In addition, the KTTDC is certified by the UK National Safety Council (NSC) and is a certified NSC representative in the region. Through its new training branch located at the heart of Doha, specifically in Mansoura neighborhood, Mowasalat seeks to increase the range of training services according to the best, latest and most sophisticated global standards and applications to make them available to as many people as possible in order to meet their growing needs, ensuring they can use comfortable means of transport, as trainees, free of charge, to and from the new branch.
The Doha Training Branch plays a key complementary role for the KTTDC. It has a management team and a fleet of training vehicles that can accommodate around 9000 trainees per year to external requests and about 3000 trainees per year for internal requests. In addition, it has modern facilities which have been made available recently to maximize effectiveness and potential.
Mowasalat provides the highest level of training services, including fine methods of dealing with others, as part of focusing on teaching the most important ethics and rules of traffic and awareness. It also implements a replacement process to replace the training fleet vehicles by new units every two years in line with international standards of safety on the roads. The Company, further, uses of a large number of female instructors for the convenience of female trainees.
KTTDC is a professional training center that provides training services based on the concept of building the professional efficiency of Mowasalat s staff and employees as well as other staff of institutions and organizations related to the transport sector on a commercial basis. Its vision is based on improving and raising the level of the transportation industry standards in the State of Qatar and the region through education, training and use of the latest world-class methods of training and development. (QNA)

UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) Pre-Forum Concluded

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) Pre-Forum, held under the theme "linking the mission of the UN Alliance of Civilizations with the Millennium Development Goals'' was concluded here tonight.
The two-day forum was attended by 200 participants representing friend states of the Alliance of Civilizations, members of civil society, the private sectors and researchers on Arab and international levels.
The Pre-Forum aimed at convening members of civil society alongside supporting governments of the UNAOC to set the agenda for the December Doha UNAOC Forum, the premier global event on intercultural dialogue and action that is held annually. The Pre-Forum successfully linked the mission of the UN Alliance of Civilizations with the Millennium Development Goals.
This Pre-Forum represents the first time civil society was formally consulted in the preparation of the agenda of a Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations. Its goals included the establishment of a platform for joint actions by governments and the private sector. The civil society representatives present enthusiastically endorsed this initiative of the Qatar Drafting Committee, with more than 190 participants from 80 countries representing NGOs, foundations, corporations, national organizations and committees.(QNA)

HH the Emir Receives Phone Call from Ismail Haniyeh

Doha, May 04 (QNA) - HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani received today a telephone call from Prime Minister of the Palestinian dissolved government Ismail Haniyeh.
During the telephone call, they reviewed the developments in the Palestinian territories in view of the reconciliation agreement signed in cairo earlier today between the Palestinian factions. (QNA)

Prime Minister Describes Intervention in Libya as "International Responsibility"

Rome, May 04 (QNA) - HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor Al-Thani said ''our intervention in Libya was not only due to the failure of a government to protect its people but rather for its practice of fierce suppression against the same people." "Here the responsibility becomes (shouldered) on the international community, '' he said.
In an article to be published tomorrow by Italian newspaper 'Corriere Della Sera', HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister said the international intervention in Libya was an action aimed to contain a massacre against civilians. But, regrettably, the massacre, which (Libyan Leader Muammar) Gaddafi perpetrated by using crystal bombs, heavy artillery, sniper fire, mercenaries and in reality all possible means, has not been completely halted, HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim said.
''That was a flagrant violation of the humanitarian law, therefore we could not turn a blind eye to this massacre,'' HE Prime Minister said.
He described developments in Libya as "not a civil war, but rather a resistance by the Libyan people of an aggression by the personal army of their leader", stressing that ''ethical duty made it incumbent on us to support that resistance by all possible means to give the Libyan people a hope for living in a free, democratic and unified country capable of exploiting its natural wealth for the public interest and not only for the interest of a selected minority.(QNA)