Sheikha Hind bin Hamad al-Thani Meets US Education Innovators — Bilateral

Sheikha Hind bint Hamad al-Thani, vice-chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation (QF), and chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Hamad bin Khalifa University, met senior officials from QF’s partner universities during a five-day visit to the United States recently. The visit, which took place last week, served as an opportunity to strengthen international ties in education to help continue building a diversified and sustainable economy in Qatar. The tour included meetings with Cornell University, Texas A&M University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Northwestern University, Carnegie Mellon University, Georgetown University, HEC Paris, and University College London. Sheikha Hind said: “At Qatar Foundation everything starts with education, it’s how we began. We’re committed to the concept of lifelong learning, and to providing an ecosystem where education can impact the life of every person.”

Sheikha Moza Meets President of the UN General Assembly — International

Sheikha Moza bint Nasser met with Mr. Peter Thomson, President of the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly. Sheikha Moza and Mr. Thomson discussed methods for ensuring the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and strategies for raising public awareness of the goals. They also discussed the importance of providing quality education for refugees, in addition to implementing laws that prevent attacks on schools in conflict areas.

The Emir Issues Emiri Decision Annulling the Formation of the Qatar National Committee for Oil and Gas — Energy

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani issued the Emiri decision No 2 of 2017 annulling the Emiri decision No 38 of 2011 on the formation of Qatar National Committee for Oil and Gas. The decision stipulated that Qatar Petroleum shall replace Qatar National Committee for Oil and Gas in all its rights and obligations.

Qatar to be a Partner for a Shovel-Ready US — Bilateral Investment

President-elect Donald Trump is a builder, and as a builder it is no surprise that he made infrastructure investment a key pillar of his campaign and, presumably, his upcoming presidency. Constructing roads, airports, mass transit, bridges, buildings and telecommunications infrastructure has become a vital part of Qatar’s domestic economic diversification as well as our external investment strategy. Qatar, which is committed to investing more than $35 billion in the U.S. over the next five years, is a natural partner for the US in the coming years as infrastructure spending is slated to grow.

Qatar’s Sovereign Wealth Fund Estimated at $335 Billion Globally — Economy

Qatar is regaining its appetite for deals. In the past two months alone, the world’s richest country per capita invested in Turkey’s biggest poultry producer, Russian oil giant Rosneft PJSC, and UK gas company National Grid Plc. The investments have been made through the Qatar Investment Authority, created in 2005 to handle the country’s windfall from liquefied natural gas sales, of which it is the world’s biggest exporter. Since then, the country - with a population smaller than Houston - has amassed $335 billion in assets around the globe, making its sovereign wealth fund the 14th largest in the world, according to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute.

Qatar Among Top Real Estate Markets in the GCC — Real Estate

With the rapid economic development and influx of expatriates, Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi have emerged as top three real estate markets in the GCC, which has been witnessing one of the fastest rate of growth in the world. The GCC region, especially Qatar, over the past decade, has been witnessing rapid economic development and demographic changes, including the influx of foreign workers, which in turn has increased the region's overall population.

Qatar will deliver amazing 2022 FIFA World Cup: Al Thawadi — Sports

The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) Secretary General Hassan Al Thawadi said that the State of Qatar will deliver an amazing 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar. Al Thawadi's statement came as he met with a German delegation from leading media outlets this week in Doha. The delegation was given a tour of key venues to see for themselves the progress Qatar has achieved on stadium construction and workers' welfare in preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar.

Qatar Chamber, Qatar Development Bank and Qatar University Launch Initiative for Young Entrepreneurs — Business Education

Qatar Chamber, Qatar University and Qatar Development Bank have launched an initiative supporting business entrepreneurs entitled " Ma'an" (Together). The initiative aims to promote the role of a knowledge-based economy by investing in the ideas of youth and raising a new generation of young entrepreneurs capable of making a contribution to sustainable development. Qatar Chamber will provide financial and logistical support to the initiative. Qatar Development Bank will also provide financial support, along with consultancy as well. Qatar University will be in charge of the technical side of the initiative.

WISE Hosts Workshop for School Leaders & Educators — Education

The World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) recently led a workshop as part of its Empowering Leaders of Learning (ELL) program, which is designed to support school leaders in improving student outcomes. The ELL workshops, held in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and the Education Development Institute (EDI) of Qatar Foundation (QF), are part of a series presented over a period of eight months.

QC to Establish 1000 Housing Units in Syria — Humanitarian

Qatar Charity (QC) is preparing for the establishment of 1000 housing units (caravans) equipped with solar-powered and furnished to the people whose houses were demolished in several areas in Syria. QC said it had held a coordination meeting in Ankara to prepare for the shelter project within Syria, to be implemented in partnership with the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) in the coming weeks.

Gentle Monster Launches Pop-In Shop at Nordstrom — Fashion

For the first time, Nordstrom will add a three-parter to its Pop-In@Nordstrom series—the ongoing themed pop-in shops offering a new interactive shopping experience for customers. Nordstrom VP of creative projects Olivia Kim curated the year’s first collection inspired by cutting edge Korean fashion concepts. Each shop will last one month, with the first series launching today at select stores and online. Gentle Monster, the Korean eyewear company with youthful and chic designs, kicks things off in January. February will follow with a shop featuring K-Beauty products, and March finishes the series with modern Korean fashion brands chosen by Olivia Kim.

ExxonMobil Develops In-Line Gas Dehydration Technology — Energy

ExxonMobil has developed cMIST technology, which dehydrates natural gas using a patented absorption system inside pipes. The company says the in-line technology can be used at both land-based and offshore natural gas production operations and replaces the need for conventional dehydration tower technology. The new technology, the company claims, more efficiently removes water vapor present during natural gas production.

Raytheon Awarded Over $1 Billion in Missile & Defense Contracts — Defense

Raytheon has been awarded more than a billion dollars in contracts for missile and missile defense hardware and services. The flurry of awards was capped off Thursday by the Waltham, Massachusetts company’s announcement that it won a $600 million contract to upgrade the Patriot missile defense system of an "undisclosed member of the 13 nations" that use the system, a company press release stated.

Lockheed Martin to Build NASA’s Lucy Spacecraft — Space Exploration

NASA has recently announced that the US space agency is planning on sending two new Discovery Program missions to investigate leftovers of the formation of the early Solar System. One of these two spacecraft, Lucy, will be built by Lockheed Martin. Lucy is planned to carry out the first reconnaissance of the Trojan asteroids that orbit near the gas giant Jupiter in tandem with the Sun. NASA hopes to launch this mission as early as 2021 in order to explore six of these tiny worlds.