Economy

Striving for Progress

Human capital development

The implementation of Qatar's Second National Development Strategy (SNDS) will look to identify some of the obstacles faced in the past and review development priorities to maximize the country's human capital potential.

The Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030) lays out a carefully designed program that covers all aspects of social, economic, and environmental development for Qatar’s future generations. Under the umbrella of QNV 2030, the SNDS 2017-2022 calls for initiatives to create the foundations of sustainable development for its growing population, emphasizing its human and social components.

The key drivers of this strategy will be the creation of a knowledge-based economy and the support of the “Qatarization,” a participation scheme of Qatari men and women in the labor market that targets 50% of national workforce in the energy and industry sectors.

With an employable population of 150,000 Qataris, which accounts for nearly half of the entire national population, the need to maximize Qatari talent is imperative.

According to the World Economic Forum, Qatar boasts one of the highest-quality education systems in the MENA region, and second in terms of human capital optimization. A significant increase was noted in the educational attainment of Qatar’s young generations compared to older ones. There are roughly 2,500 students across all universities with about 700 graduates per annum; however, the country currently captures only between 68-73% of its full human capital potential.

However, with a 54% female labor force participation rate, Qatar places amongst the highest in the region. Women’s empowerment has been set as one the priorities of QNV2030 and plays a pivotal role in the implementation of the SNDs in a way to enhance women’s position and status in the community. Consequently, a number of governmental institutions and civil society organizations have been established to deal with women’s issues.

During the opening of the 45th Session of the Advisory Council, HH the Amir called for a transition from a state of social welfare policies to a state of action that empowers all segments of society to participate in national development. Aligned with the Amir’s words, institutions such as the Qatar Business Incubation Center (QBIC) work to empower the next generation of Qatari entrepreneurs by incubating and growing ideas that can successfully turn into companies and achieve business goals.

Since its creation back in 2013, QBIC has incubated and financed more than 60 companies, thus facilitating dialog and partnerships between the public and private sectors. With a clear mission to develop the next generation of companies to reach QAR100 million (USD27.4 million) in revenue, QBIC has fostered innovative ideas from across all sectors but specially targeting tourism as well as digital solutions for the telecommunications industry

R&D efforts will also be at the forefront of the SNDS. In this regard, the R&D arm of Qatar Foundation (QF R&D) was created in 2006 to advance knowledge and education by acting as a support system for researchers, helping the country become a research hub for the region.

In 2014, the institution outlined its latest Qatar National Research Strategy, a framework for its research objectives and critical national priorities including energy security, water security, cyber security, and health.
To help build Qatar’s human capacity, QF R&D’s entities foster a culture of research in the country through its incubation centers and “Research Dialogue” series, which enable stakeholders within Qatar’s R&D ecosystem to engage in constructive public-private discussions.

Despite the challenges, Qatar constantly invests in resources and infrastructure to underpin its economic growth and diversification to build the high-caliber workforce required to sustain a successful knowledge-based economy. With a number of collaborations and partnerships with foreign institutions to explore pathways for developing human capital and addressing gaps in capacity-building provision, the country is paving the way to a successful achievement of QNV 2030.

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