President of the Planning and Statistics Authority and Chairman of the Permanent Population Committee H E Dr. Saleh bin Mohammed Al Nabit speaking during Qatar Population Day celebration, yesterday.
The Permanent Population Committee celebrated the Qatar Population Day with the participation of members of the Committee, heads and members of working groups charged with following up the implementation of the population policy action program, a representative of the United Nations Population Fund, in addition to a number of experts and specialists in Population and demographic issues.
President of the Planning and Statistics Authority and Chairman of the Permanent Population Committee H E Dr. Saleh bin Mohammed Al Nabit, affirmed that the results of the fourth phase, extending from November 2020 to October 2021 of the follow-up stages of the implementation of the Population Policy Action Program, have realized a number of important achievements and gains in the six axes of this policy, represented in the implementation of many related measures, and tangible progress in achieving the goals.
The most prominent of which is the demographic return resulting from the change in the age structure of the country’s population, which was manifested by a number of indicators, including the high rate of participation in the labor force, which reached 88.2 percent in 2020, which is among the highest rates in the world and a decrease in the unemployment rate, which did not exceed 0.1 percent in 2020.
As well as a decrease in the dependency ratio: the change in the age structure of the population was associated with a significant decrease in the demographic dependency ratio, and this percentage decreased from 40.4 percent in 1986 to 20 percent in 2020, the matter that reflects the improvement in the standard of living of the population in Qatar, and this is confirmed by population studies, which indicate that the lower this rate, the higher the standard of living.
In his opening speech, Al Nabit pointed out that benefiting from the increasing size of the working age groups of Qataris and non-Qataris enabled the State of Qatar to catch up with countries with high human development, as confirmed by human development reports issued by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
President of the Planning and Statistics Authority added that despite the qualitative achievements made in the implementation of the population policy, there are still some challenges and difficulties, including the imbalance of the demographic structure, and the rapid global changes resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, which require the development of human capital to carry out future functions related to modern technology, the matter that requires strengthening and intensifying investment in education and harmonizing curricula and university majors for these skills, in a way that contributes to restructuring the labor market on foundations capable of localizing these jobs.
Dr. Saleh bin Mohammed Al Nabit indicated that celebrating Qatar Population Day under the slogan “Following up the implementation of the states population policy in light of the COVID-19 pandemic” comes in line with the declaration of the United Nations to allocate an occasion for the World Population Day issued by the General Assembly in 1989, and based on the decision of the Honorable Council of Ministers at its regular meeting (27) on October 6, 2010 approving the organization of the Qatari Population Day in the month of October of each year, and to affirm that despite the circumstances imposed by the pandemic.
The Permanent Population Committee and its technical office, in addition to the working groups charged with following up the implementation of the second population policy of the State of Qatar (2017-2022), have fully committed to the tasks entrusted to it in the action program of this policy, while taking at the same time the precautionary measures necessary to confront the pandemic, and it was able to realize this balance via the modern communication technology that has proven its ability to face such global challenges.
For his part, Regional Director for Arab States of the United Nations Population Fund for the Arab Region (UNFPA), Dr. Luay Shabaneh reaffirmed, in a recorded speech, the importance of the population agenda for sustainable development, health, and the future. He pointed that the decline in the population and development agenda in the world is due to changing interests in countries, pressure on health services and basic services, population movement, economic growth, and all the areas that concern and affect the population in general.
During the session, Executive Director of Doha International Family Institute (DIFI) Dr. Sharifa Noaman Al Emadi reviewed a study carried out by the institute on the social determinants of fertility in Qatar and the factors that affect its low rates, adhering to the best international practices. She clarified the factors that determine the decision to have children, including personal, economic, structural, educational, and health factors, and others related to work-family balance policies, stressing the need to follow policies that achieve a balance between work duties and family obligations, financial support for marriage and childbearing, and spreading awareness to raise fertility rates and adopt policies related to increasing childbearing, such as surgeries.
Environmental consultant and expert Dr. Mohammed Saif Al Kuwari explained the role of climate change in the spread of epidemics and diseases among the population, and the cause of devastating natural disasters such as unprecedented rainfall, floods, desertification, and forest fires. He also pointed out that the rising temperature of the planet led to the melting of the ice in North and South Poles . This threatens the return of viruses and bacteria that have been frozen for thousands of years in these areas, and thus the emergence of new, unknown diseases and epidemics in areas where they were not spread before. He stressed the importance of enhancing awareness about the relationship of climate change to the spread of epidemics and diseases among the population.
Senior Consultant of Community Medicine at the Primary Health Care Corporation Dr. Sadriya Al Kooheji explained how COVID-19 affected public health and the efforts of the State of Qatar to prevent its spread using precautionary, preventive measures and providing the necessary care to those infected with the virus. She noted that this pandemic has increased the burden on health facilities, which the country dealt professionally with the crisis by following global treatment protocols using expertise and experiences of various countries of the world and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Chief Advisor to the President at Qatar University Dr. Darwish Abdulrahman Al-Emadi reviewed the university’s efforts to confront COVID-19 through its participation in emergency committees and crisis management.
He also presented an overview of the efforts of the various university sectors and their role in providing the necessary support to society and students to achieve its goals and provide citizens with the necessary support to deal with the crisis.
