File photo of a plantation drive in Qatar
Doha: The Public Parks Department of the Ministry of Municipality opened 12 new parks in 2022 under its ambitious plan to build public parks across the country.
The areas of public parks reached 3 million sqm last year, said a report issued by the Ministry of Municipality on the achievements of its Public Parks Department in 2022.
As many as 12.9 million sqm green areas were also recorded in the country during the period of study. The irrigation of green area by treated water rose to 75 percent. The Department also helped design 20 home gardens last year.
Director of the Public Parks Department, Eng Muhammad Ali Al Khouri, had said that the public parks are being developed across the country following the plans of the Ministry of Municipality.
“Lands for building new parks in future will be allocated by the Ministry of Municipality in cooperation with a number of entities concerned. The public parks are expected to increase significantly in coming years,” said Al Khouri.
According to the report, 62 embassies participated in plantation activities held in 2022 under ‘Plant Million Tree’ initiative. As many as 2,160 school students and a number of prominent personalities and FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 fans also planted trees under the initiative.
On December 18, 2022, Prime Minister and Minister of Interior H E Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani planted the millionth tree under the initiative. The initiative ‘Awareness and Community Participation’ run by the Public Parks Department also received overwhelming response last year.
The department held 52 awareness workshops which were attended by 5,000 school students. A total of 450 students from 35 schools participated in the activities held under ‘Farm Your Country’ initiative. The Department distributed 202,000 seedlings of trees and 104,000 shrubberies to the community. Fifteen public parks received sport equipment and fitness boxes.
The nurseries run by the Department produced 881,000 seedlings of trees and 126,000 shrubberies. As many as 714,000 seasonal flowers and 110,000 seedlings covering soil were also produce at these nurseries. The opening of Panda House Park was among major achievements of the Public Parks Department last year. The 120,000 sqm park, located in Al Khor city, 35 km from Doha, houses Suhail and Thuraya, the two giant pandas.
On November 1, 2022, Umm Al Seneem Park, with the largest air-conditioned jogging tracks in the world, was opened in Umm Al Seneem, Al Rayan Municipality, setting a Guinness World Record.
The 1,143-metre-long air-conditioned jogging tracks received the title of Guinness World Records for the ‘longest air-conditioned outdoor path’ on October 17, 2022.
The jogging tracks, ensuring temperatures of about 26 degree Celsius aim at encouraging people to visit parks and exercise even during the summer.
On April 10, 2022, Rawdat Al Khail Park was opened in Al Muntazah. The park, in an area of 140,000sqm, is one of the largest in the country. It features walkways, jogging track, cycle way, children’s play areas, fitness, barbecue, green areas, trees and other facilities for visitors.
