Qatar participated in the ministerial meeting, held on the sidelines of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, on safeguarding the achievements of 20 years of international engagement in Afghanistan to discuss support for Afghan women and girls and their access to education.
HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani represented Qatar at the meeting.
In a speech at the virtual meeting, HE Sheikh Mohamed reiterated Qatar's solidarity with the Afghan people and support for their efforts to achieve their legitimate demands for stability, security, peace and development.
He said that Qatar believes that comprehensive and sustainable peace is the main key to stopping the humanitarian crisis and that it is also critical to achieving all sustainable development goals, including the fourth goal of the sustainable development goals, which is related to quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all.
HE Sheikh Mohamed said that Qatar encourages the transitional government and Afghan leaders to form a more inclusive government that represents everyone.
He said that Qatar conveyed the importance of respecting women's rights and the vital role of Afghan women in the development of Afghanistan, adding that Qatar also invited the current government to follow the lead of many Islamic countries, including Qatar, where women fully and constructively exercise their rights, and represent the largest segment of the workforce in the country, as women's enrolment in higher education exceeds the number of men.
He pointed out that Qatar, out of its sense of humanitarian duty, rushed to help evacuate more than 58,000 people from Kabul to Qatar, and provided them with temporary housing, meals and healthcare, as well as providing vaccines for the emerging coronavirus, for those who need it.
Among the evacuees are families, NGOs staff, journalists, athletes, children, and many Afghan women who feel they are in danger, he said.
HE Sheikh Mohamed said that all members of the "Afghan Dreamers", an all-girls robotics team from the Afghan city of Herat, were safely evacuated to Qatar. They received scholarships from Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF) and Qatar Fund for Development to continue their education in QF universities, adding that this reflects Qatar's deep commitment to ensuring that children of all ages should enjoy the right to education.
He stressed that Qatar's efforts reflect the country's commitment to the people of Afghanistan and their right to dignity and safety, adding that it will spare no effort in supporting them and working in close cooperation and coordination with its Afghan and international partners and with the UN.