Qatar’s Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs, HE Dr Issa Saad al-Jafali al-Nuaimi has underlined that the State of Qatar has made a lot of achievements in the advancement and empowerment of women, and early attached due interest and support to  women’s issues by involving  them in the plans and national development programmes, and this is reflected in the Qatar National Vision 2030, which was launched under the Emiri Decree No 44  of  2008.
This came in a statement by HE the Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs at  the 60th session of the Commission on the Status of Women of the United Nations in New York.
The minister noted that the State of Qatar confirmed the active and the pivotal role of women, and will continue to provide all efforts  that would empower women and lead  their  advancement, and to promote their participation in all fields, in a way  that  contributes to enhance efforts in this area, at the national, regional and international levels.
He stressed  the importance of the 60th session of the Commission on the Status of Women as it  takes place after the adoption last year of the international community with the development plan beyond 2030. He  affirmed Qatar’s firm faith in  the essential role being  played by women in society, saying “This belief is based on the legacy of the values-based principles to the Islamic Shariah, which elevate the role of women as a genuine partner in the family building  and community advancement...”
He pointed out that the Constitution of the State of Qatar and national legislations highlighted  the principle of equality of rights and duties among all citizens, women and men, stressing Qatar’s  commitment to  its  international obligation and that Qatari laws relating to women comply with the related international conventions that  the State of Qatar is a party to.
The minister reviewed  the achievements of Qatari women, which played a pivotal role in the implementation of national development strategies and plans in all fields, in a way that  enhances their  position and status in the community.
He said  that the Qatar National Vision 2030 came to reaffirm the importance of women’s issues in state policy, and thus contributing to enhance their capabilities and enable them to participate fully in all aspects of life such as education, labour, health, and the process of decision-making.  
“This trend,” the minister said “confirms the status accorded by the leadership and the people of the State of Qatar for women, as  a major building block of family cohesion, and in building a society of prosperity, stability and protection of human rights and equality among all segments of society and without discrimination.
He added that “in line with  the State’s commitment  to promoting  human rights and support for women’s issues, a number of  government institutions and civil society organisations have been established  that deal with women’s issues.”
He referred in this context to the Qatar Foundation for Social Action, which includes affiliates, including protection centre and social rehabilitation centre, family counselling and others, pointing out that these institutions continue to work hard to raise awareness of women’s rights, including women with disabilities, aged women and others, as well as  providing women and girls with  quality education, equal employment opportunities and participation in decision-making.  
HE the minister also referred  to Qatar’s success in the implementation of national strategies and plans on the empowerment of women which were confirmed by international and national reports, where he referred to the Human Development Report 2015 issued by the United Nations Development Programme which  pointed out that Qatar ranked first  at  the level  of the Arab countries, while ranked 31 at the international level in the context of human development, also pointed to the fourth National Human Development of the State of Qatar’s report for 2015, which showed that the average number of years of schooling received by females has reached 14 years, a similar number of years of education for males, and amounted to government support ratio for education 19.4%  which  is higher than the ratio at the global level, which is 14%. Likewise, the percentage of female participation in the labour force increased to 35.1%, which exceed the ratios in the countries of the region.
He highlighted Qatar’s  efforts  in supporting women in countries that suffer from poverty and the effects of armed conflict and foreign occupation. In this context, he expressed Qatar’s concern about the difficult conditions faced by Palestinian women in the occupied Arab territories, especially in Gaza Strip, and the denial of basic rights. He called for the intensification of efforts for the advancement of Palestinian women and address the humanitarian conditions in accordance with the provisions of international humanitarian law and human rights, stressing the importance of supporting access to full rights, particularly the right to establish a Palestinian state, based on the resolutions of international legitimacy.