HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani addressing the International Donor Conference for Reconstruction and Development of Darfur in Doha yesterday.

QNA/Doha

HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani has called for making the return of displaced persons and refugees to their original areas in Darfur an “urgent mission”.
Addressing the International Donor Conference for Reconstruction and Development of Darfur at the Doha Ritz-Carlton Hotel yesterday, the Prime Minister said: “Let us make the return of displaced persons and refugees to their original areas in Darfur our urgent mission. It is a task that needs big finance as there are tens of thousands of people in Darfur living for years in displacement camps at home and in refugee camps in neighbouring Chad, and the return of those requires the rehabilitation of  their original areas by building houses, schools and hospitals so that they can return and resume their normal lives”.  
The opening session was attended by Sudan’s First Vice-President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Ahmed bin Abdullah al-Mahmoud, regional and international partners for the peace in Darfur, as well as representatives of the donor countries and concerned regional and international organisations.
Addressing the session, the Premier and Foreign Minister conveyed to the participants the greetings of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani.
The Premier also conveyed the greetings of HH the Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani who is following the conference with great attention.
The Prime Minister stressed Qatar’s full support for the conference and underlined that Qatar will exert every effort to ensure that the conference comes out with results that meet the expectations and aspirations of the people of Darfur.  
The Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, stressed that the conference is a culmination of efforts to bring peace, stability and development in Darfur, which started in 2008 as part of the Arab-African ministerial committee on Darfur chaired by Qatar.
Qatar’s efforts have continued since then, with the adoption of a Peace Agreement on Darfur at the conclusion of the All Darfur Stakeholders’ Conference of 27-31 May 2011 in Doha, the Prime Minister said.
In July 2011, the Sudanese government signed in Doha a peace accord with the Liberation and Justice Movement (JEM), which is being successfully implemented. The signing of the final peace agreement between the Sudanese government and JEM yesterday in Doha, represents a positive step and a real achievement marking a headway towards the consolidation of peace, stability and the reconstruction and development process in Darfur, he added.
The road to peace in Darfur was not easy and the peace process was not hasty or unplanned but far-sighted and with a broad horizon generating a just, lasting and comprehensive peace, the Prime Minister said.
Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani urged the participants at the donor conference to further support Darfur saying that “this money will go to supporting Darfur and will not be wasted in vain.”
“Peace time has begun in Darfur. A peace that will be protected by development, not by force,” the Prime Minister added.   
Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani noted that if peace was essential to advancing development,  development is necessary for the sustainability of peace.
He stressed that when Qatar agreed to head the Arab-African Committee on Darfur Peace,  it did so out of its humanitarian and ethical responsibilities as well as its Arab obligations and Islamic values, pointing out that it has not been driven by certain agendas, did not exclude anyone,  did not favour one party at the expense of another and did not distinguish between groups nor between movements.
The Prime Minister said Qatar stood from all parties to the conflict at the same distance and its aim was to bring an end to the suffering of the people of Darfur, to achieve peace and to present a model to the world that the Arabs and Africans are capable of solving their own problems, even if these problems were like the Darfur crisis.
He also stressed that efforts of Qatar were not limited to the political side. In this regard Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim referred to the initiative of the Emir for the establishment of a development bank in Darfur with the capital of $1bn to address the repercussions of the war, to build hospitals and schools, to assist in the rehabilitation of agricultural and industrial system and to help small investors to  pave the way for sustainable development in Darfur.
The Prime Minister explained that Qatar is currently implementing in Darfur a development programme to facilitate the voluntary return of displaced persons and refugees, saying that the project in the $31mn short term phase is targeting 150,000 people , while in the $529mn medium term phase will target 2mn people in 45 village councils.
Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani called on participants in the conference to allocate much in their programmes to education, saying increasing awareness and spread of education will deepen the culture of tolerance and will confirm conviction for peace and the futility of wars and conflicts, which only bring ruination and destruction.
The Prime Minister commended all who made an effort for achieving peace and development in Darfur. The Prime Minister reserved a special mention for HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Abdullah al-Mahmoud, former chief mediator Djibril Bassole and former Joint African Union-United Nations Special Representative for Darfur Ibrahim Gambari as well as the current one Mohamed Ibn Chambas, representatives from the Arab League, United Nations, special envoys to Sudan and the UNAMID.  
The Prime Minister called on the remaining groups to join the peace process saying there is no time to waste.