News | Ministry of Transport

Thursday, July 16, 2020

MOTC Participates in IMO Meeting on IMSAS

Doha-The Ministry of Transport and Communications has participated via video conferencing in the meeting the International Maritime Organization held with maritime authorities' officials from Member States to discuss the IMO Member State Audit Scheme (IMSAS) - the mandatory audit of all Member States.MOTC was represented by Ministry's Assistant Undersecretary of Maritime Transport Affairs Dr. Saleh bin Fetais Al Marri.Chaired by IMO assistant secretary-general, the meeting reviewed the impacts of the novel coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic, which caused IMSAS be postponed. It also discussed a presentation on the IMO IMSAS for 2021 and the possibility of having alternative solutions to conducting the IMSAS if the circumstances prevent it from taking place next year.

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Qatar welcomes ICJ ruling against appeals by blockading countries

Doha – QatarQatar has welcomed the International Court of Justice's rejection of the appeals filed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt against a decision by the world civil aviation body in favour of Qatar over sovereign airspace.The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in 2018 ruled it had the jurisdiction to handle a dispute brought by Qatar, which accused its neighbours of violating a convention that regulates the free passage of its passenger planes through foreign airspace.But the four allies disagreed, saying the ICAO was not the right body to judge in the dispute and that its decision to do so was "manifestly flawed and in violation of fundamental principles of due process and the right to be heard."The ruling of the International Court of Justice came in favour of Qatar in the appeals submitted by the blockading countries, according to the Government Communications Office of Qatar. It said ICJ ruled with the jurisdiction of the (ICAO) organization to consider the complaint of the State of Qatar, against the background that the blockading countries since June 2017 closed their airspace to the Qatari planes and did not allow them to fly to and from Airports in the territories of these countries are in flagrant violation of international law and related international agreements.And based on the rulings of the International Court of Justice, the ICAO Council is to resume dispute resolution procedures in the complaint submitted by the State of Qatar.His Excellency Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti, Minister of Communications and Communications, said, “We welcome the decision issued today by the International Court of Justice, which will place the blockading countries before the balance of justice and international accountability for violating the provisions of international agreements related to international civil aviation, and we are confident that the International Civil Aviation Organization will You acknowledge that these procedures are illegal."The International Court of Justice ruling is part of a series of rulings that reveal the blockade countries' insistence on ignoring international law, but every time, their arguments are refuted and the validity of the position of the State of Qatar is confirmed."Since the imposition of the illegal blockade in June 2017, the State of Qatar has continued to address the illegal measures taken by the blockade countries and their violation of international law, and the International Court of Justice decision issued today is the latest in a series of international rulings that confirm the integrity of the position of the State of Qatar, where this ruling comes in the wake of The ruling issued by the World Trade Organization last June, which recognized that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia violated its obligations under the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), by refusing to take action against the complex piracy carried out by B-channel Que, and above all, support and encourage this piracy.It is worth noting that the State of Qatar had lodged a complaint before the Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) against the blockading states after the failure of repeated attempts to reach an amicable settlement of the issue due to the intransigence of those countries.

Sunday, July 5, 2020

MOTC Holds Online Symposia on Latest COVID19 Apps, Research

Doha – QatarThe Qatar Digital Government Training Program at the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) is holding a series of virtual symposia and discussions on the latest technology research and applications relating to the Coronavirus COVID19 pandemic and how to utilize them to face the challenges during this crisis.The 21 symposia and discussions, to be conducted between June 21 and July 8, will target IT employees at government departments. Talks will include experts and academics and will be hosted in collaboration with national and global academic institutions such as Hamad bin Khalifa University, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, HEC Paris and international corporations like Huawei.These events will discuss national research and key emerging technologies including data analytics and Blockchain, and how to use them to assist in the global response to the COVID19 crisis. They will also discuss how the pandemic is impacting global supply chains.These events come as part of the continuing support from MOTC for the IT sector across government entities to help them better face the challenges of the Coronavirus pandemic and access the latest technologies, in addition to sharpening the technological, technical and leadership skills of ICT employees in such a way that contributes to achieving the objectives of the Qatar Digital Government.One of the key symposia is “Managing & Leading Remote Team” on July 8 in collaboration with HEC Paris, to be attended by Dean of HEC Paris in Qatar Dr. Pablo De Holan and Prof. Patrick Delamaire. It will highlight the most effective remote team management tools from the standpoint of leaders and managers across organizations. The audience will be able to ask questions and share real life challenges and learn how to overcome them.MOTC had earlier announced it would continue its QDGTP training workshops for IT employees of the government sector. All workshops are now virtual, observing social distancing rules.As for the training plan for Q3 & Q4 of 2020, QDGTP is set to deliver more than 39 training courses remotely. QDGTP is also scheduling some 26 training courses with Microsoft in early August.For more information on how to join these online events, please visit QDGTP at https://www.motc.gov.qa/en/qdgtp or email qdgtraining@motc.gov.qa

Sunday, July 5, 2020

MOTC Conducts Control, Awareness Campaign as Phase II of Lifting COVID19 Curbs Begins

Doha-The Ministry of Transport and Communications, represented by Maritime Affairs Sector, has conducted a second control and awareness campaign as Phase II of lifting the Coronavirus COVID19 restrictions begins.Professionals from the General Directorate of Coasts and Borders Security and the National Tourism Council participated in the campaign, which comes as MOTC continues to check and make sure helmsmen and users of all types of maritime vessels comply with healthcare precautions that they must follow and other relevant marine safety and security instructions.Those professionals inspected to what extent helmsmen and users of all types of maritime vessels follow the instructions of the National Committee to Combat the Coronavirus. They also delivered more of such recommendations and awareness on the importance of adhering to these instructions to stop the spread of the virus. They also inspected compliance with relevant marine safety and security instructions and availability of all safety and security equipment on maritime vessels.

Sunday, June 28, 2020

MOTC Calls for Entries for “World Summit Awards 2020"

Doha – QatarThe Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) is now accepting applications at the national level for the “World Summit Awards 2020”.The World Summit Awards (WSA) is an international competition that selects and promotes the world’s best start-ups in digital content and innovative applications that are having a significant impact on improving society. Combining an ongoing series of international events and activities with a global network of start-ups, social entrepreneurs, mentors, jurors, speakers, experts, government leaders, academics and civil society, WSA seeks to raise awareness and give recognition to the best e-content produced around the world.Companies, institutions and individuals across the country are now invited to join the competition by submitting their best digital content applications to compete in eight award categories, with winners representing Qatar at the world level. Applications will be accepted until July 16, 2020.The eight award categories are government & citizen engagement, health & wellbeing, environment & green energy, business & commerce, learning & education, culture & tourism, smart settlements & urbanization, and inclusion & empowerment.A local jury, chaired by the official national expert for WSA in Qatar, Ms. Reem Al-Mansoori, MOTC Assistant Undersecretary of Digital Society Development Affairs, will assess the submissions and select one qualified project for each category to represent Qatar.The international selection process involves four stages, from local country selection to a global shortlist of five projects per category, and finally the announcement of the winners. Jury panels consist of renowned international experts. Winners will be announced to the public and will be invited to the WSA Global Congress where they will have the opportunity to pitch their projects to an international on-site panel.All submissions must be no more than two years old (after January 1, 2018) when submitted to the competition, and may include any applications that offer useful, high quality, innovative digital content such as webpages, interactive and SMS-based products, etc.Submitted projects should be real ventures that are already up and running. Incomplete trial versions will not be accepted and will be automatically eliminated.All work must be free of offensive or plagiarized content and may not violate human rights as laid out in the UN Declaration of Human Rights. Submissions that encourage war, violence or discrimination will not be accepted. Similarly, submissions that violate international copyright provisions will be excluded.Those interested in joining the competition are invited to send detailed information on their work to MOTC via email: wsa@motc.gov.qa. Further information is available here.

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

MOTC Conducts Control, Awareness Campaign at Maritime Entry Points

Doha – QatarThe Ministry of Transport and Communications, represented by Maritime Affairs Sector, has conducted a control and awareness campaign on maritime entry points across the country to ensure all Coronavirus COVID19 preventive and precautionary measures are in place, which aim to stop the spread of the disease.Responsible professionals from the Ministry inspected to what extent these precautions are followed by maritime entry points and their workers, as well as helmsmen and users of all types of maritime vessels.They also inspected to what extent the maritime safety and security instructions are being followed. Additionally, they delivered more of such recommendations and awareness to helmsmen and workers of maritime entry points.