Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation attended the Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference 2018 (ARC’18) and presented awards to the winners of ‘Best Research Project’ and ‘Best Innovation Award’ at Qatar National Convention Centre on Monday. 
HE Sheikha Hind bint Hamad al-Thani, Vice Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation, HE Dr Khalid bin Mohamed al-Attiyah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs, HE Dr Mohamed bin Saleh al-Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry were among the distinguished guests present on the occasion. 
Vivek Kundra, former chief information officer of the United States, Deborah Wince-Smith, president and CEO of the Council on Competitiveness, David Roberts, distinguished faculty, Singularity University and Prof Hasan Mandal, president, Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey were some of the international speakers at the event. The conference is being held under the theme ‘R&D: Focusing on Priorities, Delivering Impact’.
The ARC’18 ‘Best Research Project Award’ went to Dr Talal Khader Talal of Hamad Medical Corporation and Dr David Armstrong of the University of Southern California, in recognition of their collaborative project ‘Tackling Diabetic Foot Ulcer’. The ARC’18 ‘Best Innovation Award’ was won by Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s Qatar Computing Research Institute for their project 'The Advanced Transcription System (QATS)', an Arabic language speech recognition technology.


At the inaugural session, Sheikha Hind said: “The Annual Research Conference 2018 stems from Qatar Foundation's efforts to address major national challenges by contributing to the establishment of a diverse and sustainable economy, while providing effective and impactful solutions. We believe that research, technology, and development are among the most important elements of a competitive and diverse economy, and are therefore a key priority at Qatar Foundation, along with empowering and activating research innovations across Qatar.”
Kundra, keynote speaker at the inaugural session of the conference said: “Next-generation economies need to think internationally and systematically from day one, with a 20-year view, while attracting the best and brightest innovators and ensuring investments are focused. The wonderful thing is that, through technology, an idea can now reach global scale really quickly. Research and development succeeds where countries have been able to attract global talent not just to build great research institutes, but to identify a path to commercialising their technology.
“There is no monopoly on thinking. You just have to be able to unleash your citizens’ creative spirit, dreams, and aspirations to build your nation’s next economy,” he added.
The two-day conference brings local and international perspectives to the pivotal issue of how Qatar’s research and innovation efforts can address the nation’s greatest challenges, and make a mark in the global marketplace. The opening day of ARC’18 was also attended by other dignitaries and 2,600 delegates from Qatar and around the world.
The seventh edition of ARC organised by Qatar Foundation Research and Development provides a platform for knowledge-sharing and multidisciplinary collaboration. The global gathering has introduced three new tracks, each centering on a pivotal element of Qatar’s R&D ecosystem. 
Day one of ARC’18 featured expert-led panel sessions and presentations of impactful research projects focused on the four thematic pillars defined in Qatar’s National Research Strategy : Energy and Environment; Computing and Information Technology; Health and Biomedical; Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities. 
ARC'18 concludes today with more panel discussions and paper presentations.