Doha: The 13th Asia/Oceania Region Intergovernmental Ministerial Meeting On Anti-Doping in Sport was held yesterday in Doha and chaired by HE Minister of Culture and Sports Salah bin Ghanim Al Ali. The meeting is organized under the supervision of the International Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
The meeting was attended by a number of ministers of youth and sports and representatives from 34 countries as well as WADA officials.
From today, Anti-Doping Lab Qatar (ADLQ) will be organising its sixth annual symposium under the patronage of Qatar Olympic Committee president HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad al-Thani at Doha Marriott Hotel.  
The two-day symposium, which has been titled Anti-Doping in Humans and Animals: Parallels and Divergences, will have participation of many experts from the field of anti-doping and veterinary medicine.  
Yesterday's intergovernmental meeting discussed several points related to each country’s efforts in anti-doping in sport, as well as the challenges they face, especially in view of the great development made in discovering and reducing cases as well as the role of these countries in financing studies carried out in this field. It also discussed all procedures related to anti-doping, and issues concerning pharmaceutical manufacturers.
The participants reviewed the international agreements in the anti-doping field, as well as coordination among them regarding this scourge and the fight against it the field of sports. Chairman of the Qatar Anti-Doping Commission (QADC) Dr Nasser Ali Al Ansari said in a statement that the meeting is held annually and this year it is hosted by the State of Qatar in the presence of WADA Director-General Davis Howman.
He added that the meeting touched on the anti-doping efforts, dope tests at foreign and domestic tournaments, instructions for dope inspectors, as well as the specific procedures that must be followed in this matter, especially in screening programs, in addition to education and awareness efforts at both community and academic levels.