Doha, May 19 (QNA) - On the sidelines of the High-level Strategic Dialogue between the State of Qatar and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) signed two agreements to bolster the global role of OCHA in addressing human needs.
In the presence of HE Minister of State for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lolwah bint Rashid Al Khater and HE United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths, the two agreements were signed by Acting Director General of QFFD Sultan Ahmed Al Aseeri and OCHA's Director of Financing and Partnerships Division Lisa Doughten.
The first agreement entails providing an unearmarked multi-year primary funding amounting to USD 16 million. The second agreement involves QFFD's commitment to supporting the Complex Emergency Response Fund (CERF) with a total sum of USD 1 million over one year, 2024. This funding is designated to enhance the capacity of humanitarian responders, ensuring the delivery of life-saving assistance in response to crises wherever and whenever they occur.
"Our continuous collaboration with OCHA reflects our commitment to addressing global humanitarian needs. The agreements we have signed will ensure the availability of necessary resources to effectively respond to crises worldwide, supporting UNOCHA during these challenging times," said the Acting Director General of QFFD.
"As we continue to confront humanitarian emergencies around the world, the UN's CERF empowers us to take swift action, even before crises erupt," said the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths. "I am grateful to the QFFD for their longstanding support and look forward to further deepening our partnership," he added.
In a related context, the QFFD participated in a number of sessions, as part of the High-Level Strategic Dialogue, which addressed aspects of cooperation between the State of Qatar and the OCHA and how to confront the challenges facing the humanitarian sector globally.
The High-Level Strategic Dialogue came with the aim of strengthening the interconnection, interaction, and relations between the State of Qatar and the OCHA to ensure organized strategic participation in a range of partnership issues and to determine strategic priorities and areas of cooperation to meet the growing humanitarian needs, thus being a milestone in the cooperation between Qatar and the OCHA. (QNA)