Qatar and the UK are keen to develop partnerships in net zero technologies and biotechnology, British ambassador Jon Wilks has said, in addition to strengthening other areas of co-operation.
Speaking at a recent media tour to The Garden of GREAT near the Museum of Islamic Art Park, he noted that the two countries agreed – during His Highness the Amir's visit to the UK in May – to develop investments for the benefit of both economies: from creative sector partnership to clean growth and renewable energy, biotechnology, and the healthcare sector in general.
“But really, you can imagine in the economy of the 21st century, we need to be building partnerships using technology across all sectors,” the envoy said, as he underlined the need to be looking at technologies in agriculture, education, finance, and medicine.
“And we have a lot to offer, and Qatar is ambitious to develop this in the years to come,” Wilks said. “So all those things are going to be part of the legacy.”
With many Qataris seeing UK as a second home and given the huge presence of British nationals in Qatar, the ambassador underlined the importance of strengthening the relationship among the young generation – a renewal of the human bridge between the two countries.
He noted that the strategic investment partnership between the two countries is expected to boost their creative sector collaboration, ranging from films and entertainment to gaming using technology.
Ranked 6th biggest globally and 2nd largest in Europe, the UK embassy noted that the UK video game industry is world-leading, offering a robust ecosystem for development and innovation.
The UK is also the second largest music exporter in the world after the US, and it is the third largest music market in the world (source: BPI).
“We wanted this to happen in Qatar and in the UK, and so we've had many artists and experts who've been here with us, and we've been arranging meetings with Qatar officials who are working in this area, and we hope to build on that in the years to come,” Wilks said.
About celebrating creativity and diversity at the FIFA World Cup 2022, he said that such themes reflect the common objectives that Qatar and the UK share.
About the number of British nationals at the tournament, Wilks said tens of thousands of England and Wales football fans came from the UK and British communities in Gulf States and the region.
“Wales, of course, represents the Celtic side of the identities of the UK, and England represents the Anglo-Saxon side,” he said. “So you have there the ancient diversity represented by the two teams.”
“But we also have the modern diversity of the UK, and that comes from the communities that have migrated since the Second World War in the last 70 years, mainly from the subcontinent – India, Pakistan, Bangladesh – but also from the Afro-Caribbean Islands, and more recently from Africa and the Commonwealth countries,” he added.
Wilks: You can imagine in the economy of the 21st century, we need to be building partnerships using technology across all sectors.
