By Peter Townson
British Council director Simon Winetroube looking forward to the continued growth of the council and relations between the UK and Qatar
Educational and cultural ties between the UK and Qatar are as good as they have ever been, according to the director of the British Council, Simon Winetroube, who expressed his intent to further deepen the relationship between the nations over the coming year.
The British Council was established in Qatar in 1972, and has become a prominent organisation on the developing local cultural scene.
Winetroube arrived in Qatar nearly four years ago, and in that time the council has grown in a number of areas. While the teaching aspect of the institution dealt with around 800 students as recently as 18 months ago, the centre now teaches around 1,500 students at any given time. The council also provides tailor-made courses to various organisations throughout the country, assisting them with both language and soft skills.
The demand for English language courses is “through the roof,” explained Winetroube, who said that the council also had a mission to extend lessons to people who may not have the resources to afford face-to-face meetings.
He said that the council had a number of online applications which can be accessed for free, as well as plans for mobile telephone applications, newspaper courses and also a radio teaching programme which will be launched on Qatar Foundation Radio in the near future.
As well as teaching English, the council is involved in cultural development, and Winetroube said that their involvement in Qatar has continued to increase in recent years.
He spoke about recent cultural initiatives, including the My Father’s House exhibition and the Gulf Stage project, which led to the screening of a Qatari play Me…You…The Human at the Shubbak festival in London earlier this month.
“These are successes that we want to build on,” he said, explaining that the council is also looking at the possibility of working with Katara in the future.
Winetroube explained that the council was also hoping to bring some high quality theatre to Qatar over the coming year.
Plans are in the early stages, but he did state that this theatre event will probably be the council’s next major event in Qatar.
However, as well as bringing cultural events to Qatar, Winetroube is also mindful of the contribution towards the country’s long-term development.
“There has been an astonishing increase in the amount that is going on here in Qatar,” he said, adding “it is happening in a strategic and planned way, and clearly something that will add to and enrich local culture and life for the local and expatriate communities.”
Looking ahead, Winetroube is eagerly anticipating an Energy Security Research Symposium set to take place in November in Qatar. In partnership with Qatar Foundation and the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institution, the British Council will be bringing in a number of world renowned experts to help develop a number of research projects and programmes to be furthered in Qatar in the future.
Additionally, December will see the launch of a research project involving the council with the Royal Society and the OIC, as part of the ‘Atlas of the Islamic World’ project, in which Qatar Foundation is a major partner.
This research case study will coincide with the Forum of the Alliance of Civilisations, to be held in Doha at the same time, explained Winetroube.
Praising the efforts of the country’s leadership to promote education and research in general, he noted that the establishment of a UK university here next year will also encourage other institutions to explore the opportunities available for development in Qatar.
“I’m delighted to see that UCL are establishing a presence here in Qatar, he said, noting I hope this will encourage others to come and have a presence here as well, although what shape and form that may take, I am unsure,” he said.
“This is something to build on, and we will help to develop partnerships as much as we can,” he said, adding “there has always been a strong relationship between Qatar and UK and it continues to get stronger.”
