News | Ministry of Transport

Thursday, February 15, 2018

HE Prime Minister Witnesses QDGTP IT Talent, Access to Employment Graduation Ceremony

Doha – Qatar His Excellency the Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al-Thani today graduated the first batches of both the IT Talent Program and the Access to Employment Program, under the umbrella of the Ministry of Transport and Communications.Executed in partnership with HEC Paris in Qatar, the IT Talent Program is one of several programs and initiatives under the wider Qatar Digital Government Training Program (QDGTP), which is one of many similar programs that aim to achieve the strategic objectives of the Qatar Digital Government 2020.QDGTP focuses on supporting Qatar national strategy for digital transformation of government sectors through providing training solutions focused on enhancing the current capabilities of ICT professionals. It aims to build new skills that ICT professionals need to meet the desired performance standards of their roles and thereby support the objectives of the Qatar e-Government 2020 Strategy.The Access to Employment is a new program from MADA, the Qatar Assistive Technology Center, in association with the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labor & Social Affairs. MADA works on enabling the disabled through assistive information and communication technologies.It works to improve the digital inclusion for persons with disabilities across Qatar. It has identified three key domains, namely education, employment and community to continue to fulfil its mission of removing the barriers that restrict PwDs from participating in society. These three domains are assisted through advisory services and policy recommendations. The Access to Employment Program works to qualify the disabled people to enter the job market to access real employment opportunities. The event was organized by MoTC under the patronage of HE the Prime Minister and Interior Minister and attended by several ministers, senior state officials, media personalities, HEC Paris delegation and graduates’ families. It featured QDGTP’s 2017 accomplishments and unveiled its new partnerships and improvement plans for 2018.“HEC Paris is honored to have partnered with the Qatar Ministry of Transport and Communications to create this bespoke program, a first-of-its-kind in the region, and to enhance the leadership and management of highly-skilled CTOs in ministries, government and semi-governmental entities,” said Dr. Nils Plambeck, Dean & CEO of HEC Paris in Qatar.“This program provided participants a unique opportunity to engage with and learn from HEC Paris world-renowned faculty of highly-qualified and experienced professors. The participants can now play a major role in the Qatar Digital Government Strategy 2020. This collaboration with MoTC underlines HEC Paris’ commitment, in partnership with Qatar Foundation, to help develop the region’s leaders of today and tomorrow across the governmental and private sectors,” Dr. Plambeck added.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

MoTC, Qatar Airways Celebrate National Sport Day 2018

Doha – Qatar The Ministry of Transport and Communications today marked the National Sport Day 2018, which is celebrated annually across Qatar on the second Tuesday of February, in collaboration with Qatar Airways at Al Sadd Sports Club.In this year’s celebrations, the Ministry and QA were joined by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA), Mowasalat (Karwa), Qatar Ports Management Company (Mwani), Qatar Aeronautical College and Hamad Port.The program of the event featured an array of recreational and sporting activities for employees and their family members, as well as special events for children.On this occasion, HE Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti said; “Qatar National Sport Day reflects the vision of the wise leadership for building individuals and society. Its key message is that sports should be a part of the culture and life of individuals and society, and one aspect of investing in the human element."He said the Ministry was always eager to participate in the NSD along with all entities in the transportation and ICT sectors to raise awareness of the importance of sport and its great impact on the rise and progress of communities, as well as encouraging people to keep fit and follow a healthy lifestyle.The Ministry’s participation in NSD, he noted, translates a vision of partnership with various entities across the country to promote sport to build up healthy individuals capable of contributing to the development and progress and the achievement of Qatar National Vision 2030. Activities began in the early morning with warmups, walking, jogging and some exercises for women. The program featured several recreational and sportive activities for adults and children, which collectively made today a great day for all participants, who enjoyed their favorite games and participated actively. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, HE Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “We are proud to take part in National Sports Day celebrations and to promote Qatar’s 2030 Vision. By hosting a fun and active day for our employees, we are encouraging them and other members of the community to incorporate healthy lifestyles and habits, and helping foster a healthy and energetic way of living in Qatar.” Conveying pride in Qatar,” he added, “is one of our corporate values, and we show pride toward Qatar by taking part in fulfilling its vision.”The event saw wide participation from many staff members and their families from transportation and telecommunication sectors, led by senior officials. This helped all to get together, communicate more, cement friendship and colleagueship bonds, in addition to practicing some sport. The event program featured several physical games like the tug-of-war, mind games, as well as challenges and competitions designed for families. The day ended in an excellent environment. Participants hailed it was well organized and rich with activities and events that ignited the spirit of participation and competition.

Thursday, February 1, 2018

Qatar, US Sign LOIs on Cybersecurity, Collaboration Platform

Washington-The State of Qatar and the United States have signed letters of intent (LOIs) in the area of cybersecurity and on the US-Qatar Collaboration Platform.The two LOIs were signed by Mr. Eng. Khalid Al-Hashmi, Assistant Undersecretary of Cyber Security, at Ministry of Transport and Communications, and from the U.S. side, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Global Markets and Director General of the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service Ms. Erin Walsh, and Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs Ms. Manisha Singh.The two LOIs are among several other agreements and MoUs signed between Doha and Washington in various fields during the Qatari-US Strategic Dialogue that started in Washington DC Tuesday.The first LOI, signed by MoTC and the Department of Commerce on the US-Qatar Collaboration Platform, aims to strengthen and expand the bilateral commercial cooperation through fostering increased collaboration between U.S. and Qatari companies in areas of mutual interest, including smart cities and infrastructure areas such as transportation, logistics, environment, healthcare, sports, and e-commerce.It also aims to encourage companies of both countries to explore cooperation in the Middle East and other appropriate opportunities, to increase the international competitiveness of companies from both countries.The second LOI was signed with the Department of State in the area of cybersecurity, as the two sides intend to promote the expansion of bilateral cooperation, and cooperation in multilateral fora.Forms of cooperative activities may include information exchange and sharing of cybersecurity best practices, cooperation on counter-cybercrime, cyber defense, and capacity building activities.

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

27 New Ideas Win Incubation at MoTC’s Digital Incubation Center

Doha – QatarTwenty-seven new innovative ideas have been accepted and will be incubated within the Startup Track at the Ministry of Transport and Communications’ Digital Incubation Center (DIC), as the DIC IdeaCamp events have come to an end after six weeks of exciting live pitching from a total of 31 competing innovative ideas, before specialized evaluation and assessment committees. IdeaCamp had initially started with 85 innovative ideas, 31 of them qualified for finals and 27 won the incubation.The participating ideas covered a wide range of fields that interest all segments of society, based on modern technology. The ideas are meant to help solve problems at the environmental, educational, economic and social levels, including e-commerce, Blockchain, iBeacon, biotechnologies, IoT, VR and social technology.IdeaCamp is a new DIC program designed for entrepreneurs, developers and designers who have a great idea for a technology solution. Over six weeks, IdeaCamp featured several workshops and training and mentorship courses conducted by specialized training institutions where entrepreneurs were educated how to develop a business model, build a prototype and test their ideas with potential customers.Participants were introduced to sample prototypes for well-known companies such as Airbnb, Uber and Flickr.Winning ideas will be assessed and tested again after one year of incubation at the DIC in order to establish whether it should continue being incubated. This depends on how far the concept idea develops and grows.“We are delighted for the success of the IdeaCamp events after achieving the aspired goal, which was the introduction of a new big batch and unique levels of entrepreneurial businesses. IdeaCamp saw a great deal of intense competition, which is propitious for a promising future for entrepreneurship and innovation projects in Qatar,” said DIC Manager Duha Al-Buhendi.She added that the DIC under MoTC would continue supporting entrepreneurs to harness their capabilities and help their ideas grow into real business on Qatari market.Ms. Amal Al-Shummari is the owner of Nefaish innovative idea, which qualified for incubation. She said IdeaCamp “was the ideal place to develop my idea”, and that she “enjoyed attending all tainting courses and lectures. The team were very helpful. I’d advise all those who have ideas to join IdeaCamp to develop their ideas.”Shiekha Al-Marri, owner of Abilitx, said IdeaCamp “was the proper environment to exchange and develop my ideas with the proper people. IdeaCamp help me a lot to find a way to run things smoothly, solve issues swiftly and improve my plans.”

Monday, January 29, 2018

HE Minister Holds Talks with Malaysian Ambassador

Doha – QatarHE Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti met here today with HE the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Malaysia to Qatar Dato Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin. The two officials discussed the bilateral relations between the two friendly countries in the fields of transportation, ports, aviation and communications, and means of further enhancing them.

Sunday, January 28, 2018

Qatar Deposits Instruments of Accession to UN’s TIR Convention

Doha – QatarQatar has recently deposited its instruments of accession to the TIR Convention, which will enter into force for the State of Qatar this July 25.By so doing, Qatar has become the 73rd Contracting Party to the United Nations’ TIR Convention, the only global customs transit system, to facilitate trade and the seamless and secure movement of goods across its borders.The only global customs transit system for moving goods across international borders, TIR, or Transports Internationaux Routiers, has been supporting trade and development for over 60 years, by allowing customs-sealed vehicles and freight containers to transit countries with minimal border checks. It is governed by the United Nations TIR Convention, which is hosted by UNECE, and managed by the world road transport organization, IRU.The TIR Convention came into effect in 1975. It facilitates the transport of goods between countries. It is the only global customs transit system in existence. It now has 73 Contracting Parties covering the whole of Europe, and reaches out to Asia, North Africa and the Middle East. The TIR Convention is expanding rapidly, with Pakistan, China and India, which are home to almost 40% of the world population, acceding to the Convention within the last three years alone.The Ministry of Transport and Communications emphasizes that Qatar’s accession to TIR Convention will allow its land transport fleet and other land shipping modes to move to ports and harbors of TIR Convention countries by RoRo ships, move by land to where goods are released in any of TIR countries, and ship and transport goods on same track to Qatar. The new system will enable free movement for land transport modes that belong to those countries when shipping goods from or to Qatar, the Ministry says, adding that this will contribute to saving transport costs significantly thanks to removing transaction fees for those goods, in addition to reducing transport duration from countries of origin to Qatar.