Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser plays a key role in supporting the country’s National Vision – a far-reaching agenda to transform Qatar into a thriving, knowledge-based society by 2030. For more than 15 years, Sheikha Moza has been a driving force behind education and social reforms in her country. Sheikha Moza is also active on the international stage, spearheading projects to promote peace and human development throughout the world. Domestically, she serves as Chairperson of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), a private non-profit organisation founded in 1995. Its flagship project is Education City, which covers over 14 million square metres and houses branch campuses of renowned international universities and institutions. QF is also engaged in numerous scientific research and economic and social development projects. In addition to her work at Qatar Foundation, Sheikha Moza served as the Vice Chair of the Supreme Council of Health from 2009-2014 and as the Vice Chair of the Supreme Education Council from 2006-2012. In these roles, she has helped enact major top-down reforms of Qatar’s public schools and healthcare system. More recently, she chairs the Sidra Medical and Research Centre, a new training and research hospital that is envisaged to become a leading institution for women and children’s specialty care.
On a regional and international level, Sheikha Moza has launched multiple projects including the International Fund for Higher Education in Iraq, the Silatech initiative to address the growing challenge of youth employment in the Middle East and North Africa, and Education Above All(EAA), a global initiative that aims to bring new life chances and real hope and opportunities to poor and marginalised children, youth and women in the developing world. EAA is carrying out its objectives through a number of existing programmes such as Educate a Child (EAC), Protecting Education in Insecurity and Conflict (PEIC) and Al-Fakhoora.
Sheikha Moza plays an active role with the United Nations (UN) to support global education. In 2003, she was appointed as UNESCO’s Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education; in 2008 she was appointed by the Secretary General of the UN as Alliance of Civilizations (AOC) Ambassador; and in 2010 she became a member of the UN Millennium Development Goals Advocacy Group with a special emphasis on Goal 2 – universal primary education. In 2012 she was appointed as a Steering Committee Member of the UN Secretary-General’s Global Education First Initiative.
Among Sheikha Moza’s many honours are the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy and the George Bush Award for Excellence in Public Service in 2013. In June 2009, she was inducted into the Academie des Beaux Arts de l’Institut de France (Academy of Fine Arts of the Institute of France), the prestigious French society that generates awareness of the arts through education and helps develop artistic relationships on an international level. In 2007, Sheikha Moza was presented the prestigious Chatham House Award for her contributions to improving international relations.
Sheikha Moza graduated from Qatar University with a degree in sociology and has been awarded honorary doctorates from Virginia Commonwealth University, Texas A&M University, Carnegie Mellon University, Imperial College London and Georgetown University.
Original Biography:Â http://goo.gl/5Gdu2l