Qatar Charity, WSSCC sign deal to enhance strategic ties
Qatar Charity and the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at enhancing strategic co-operation to implement joint projects, exchange experiences and find funding opportunities for co-operation and partnership in humanitarian and development work.
The MoU was signed under the patronage and support of the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) on the sidelines of a high-level political forum on sustainable development held in New York.
The MoU was signed by Yousuf Ahmed al-Hammadi, adviser to the CEO of Qatar Charity, and Rolf Luyendijk, executive director of WSSCC.
The purpose of the MoU is to establish strategic co-operation between both parties, through which QC can be an implementing partner for WSSCC’s programmes and projects in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in the MoU.
The MoU also aims to exchange experiences and find joint funding opportunities in the field of humanitarian and development work and create opportunities for co-operation in different areas and countries that both parties have interest in and agreed upon.
In collaboration with WSSCC, QFFD organised a high-level meeting to study the impact of health facilities on education and health within the framework of an integrated approach to human development.
The meeting was held on the sidelines of a high-level political forum on sustainable development in New York.
Ali Abdulla al-Dabbagh, deputy director-general for planning at QFFD, who attended the MoUsigning ceremony, said “the partnership between Qatar Charity and the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council will have an important impact on the efforts to advance sanitation at the global level, and increase the synergies with the education and health sectors, pointing out that sustainable achievements in sanitation require the adoption of strong partnerships between development agencies, NGOs and international organisations, in line with SDG 17.”
Al-Hammadi noted, “I am delighted to sign this MoU, which reflects the strong relationship between Qatar Charity and the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council, underlining the importance of cooperation and building strategic partnerships as a means to meet the challenges of development and humanitarian action worldwide, especially with the increasing numbers of displaced people and refugees across the world due to the high frequency of conflicts in many areas.
“Through its collaboration with development partners and local civil society organisations, Qatar Charity has managed to lay the foundations to design and implement project based on its local knowledge of cultural standards and development priorities, which enables it to achieve more effective interventions and faster response.”
Luyendijk added, “Humanitarian disasters and crises taking place today in our world call on humanitarian and development actors for further coordination to combine efforts in the areas of numerous humanitarian crises affecting our world.”
He also hoped that “the agreement will be an added value in giving efficient and effective services, improving hygiene and providing adequate water on which the lives of victims of crises and disasters depend.”