Qatar has a stellar track record in providing humanitarian and development assistance to the needy countries and contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals 2030. This is in the framework of its commitment to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations (UN), especially the principle of co-operation and partnership. These facts were highlighted by HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr Mohamed Abdul Wahed Ali al-Hammadi, during the work of the 40th Session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) General Conference in Paris the other day. The session is continuing until November 27.
It may be recalled that His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani announced on the sidelines of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly, and during his participation in the UN Climate Action Summit held on September 23, that Qatar contributed $100mn to support developing island countries and the least developed countries to deal with climate change and environmental challenges. A new partnership agreement was signed between Qatar’s Education Above All Foundation and the World Bank, which commits both parties to provide $250mn to support 2mn children and access to quality education in 40 countries. Qatar had declared at Doha Forum in 2018 to provide multi-year support for the financing of a number of bodies of the United Nations system with $500mn. As pointed out by HE Dr al-Hammadi, the total financial assistance provided by the Qatar Fund For Development to support the education sector in several regions of the world amounted to about $710mn from 2013-2019. 
Qatar has pledged $62.78mn in voluntary contributions to core resources of a number of UN agencies, departments and programmes in 2020, emphasising that the country attaches the utmost importance to strengthening its partnership with the UN system in order to meet common global challenges. This was announced by HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the UN, ambassador Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif al-Thani at the United Nations Pledging Conference for Development Activities held at the UN headquarters in New York. HE Sheikha Alya explained that contributions to core resources would be distributed among several UN offices. She said $15mn would be allocated to the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism, $10mn to the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, $8mn to UNRWA, $8mn to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and $5mn will go to the United Nations Development Programme. Other contributions will include $4mn to Unicef, $1mn to the UN Office High Commissioner for Human Rights and $1mn to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, $1mn to the UN Trust Fund for Resident Co-ordinator system, $5mn to Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict and $5mn to the Office of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth.
Other voluntary contributions would amount to $5mn for the digitisation of UN documents, as well as $250,000 to support the organisation of the International Symposium on Youth Participation in Mediation Processes to be held in Doha in December 2020. Qatar will also allocate $30,000 to the UN Voluntary Trust Fund on Combat Contemporary Forms. As HE Sheikha Alya stressed, Qatar seeks to improve the ability of the UN to respond quickly and in a consistent manner to the millions of people in need in different parts of the world.