Qatari Newspapers Editorials

Doha, November 28 (QNA) - In their editorials Monday, Qatari newspapers paid attention to the arrival of dozens of world leaders and high-ranking officials from various countries to Doha to attend the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. The newspapers said that this global event is much more than just a World Cup, as it contributed to highlighting Qatar's political and diplomatic role, its position as an important player in the region and the world, and its success in emphasizing the message of love, peace and humanity from the region to all peoples of the world. The papers also highlighted the advanced position occupied by the State of Qatar internationally and regionally in the GovTech Maturity Index (GTEI) 2022 issued by the World Bank (WB) Group, which was the result of great and intensive efforts by all entities in the State that worked as one team to achieve tangible progress in the field of digital transformation in the country. They dailies underlined the State of Qatar's endeavor to transform its economy into a knowledge-based and digital economy, as it does everything necessary to localize technology and make it accessible to all, and has made quantum leaps in building and developing the information and communication technology sector and digital transformation. Al-Sharq newspaper said in its editorial that dozens of world leaders and high-ranking officials from various countries flocked to Doha to attend the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, whether by participating in the opening day, attending part of the activities of this global event, or providing support to the teams of their countries, noting that this reflects the State of Qatar's great position and the distinguished friendship and partnership it enjoys with all countries of the world. The paper also referred to HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani's meeting on Sunday with HE President of the Republic of Liberia George Weah and his accompanying delegation, who are visiting Qatar to attend part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 matches. It explained that dozens of leaders and officials from all over the world participated in the opening of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which indicates that this edition of the World Cup is the first in the history to see such influx of world leaders, noting that more officials continue to flock every day to Doha, which has become a global destination for meeting. Al-Sharq concluded its editorial by saying that this continuous influx of world leaders to attend the World Cup events and matches not only reflects the great success of this tournament that has been achieved at various levels, but also shows that this global event is much more than just a World Cup, as it contributed to highlighting Qatar's political and diplomatic role and its position as an important player in the region and the world, as well as its success in emphasizing the message of love, peace and humanity from the region to all peoples of the world. Meanwhile, English-language newspaper The Peninsula said that the World Cup 2022 is a turning point for the region, thanks to the great enthusiasm and attention being given to the role of sport in international relations and cultural communication between peoples of the world. Under the title "A platform for cultural dialogue", the paper said that while Qatar seeks to preserve its own values, traditions, culture and identity, it is welcoming visitors from around the world as Qatar believes that sporting event like the World Cup is an opportunity to enhance communication by providing an appropriate environment for cultural dialogue between nations and introduce its cultural identity. The paper added that the tournament is important for Qatar also from an economic point of view as it aims to attract over 6 million tourists every year by 2030 and diversify its economy. In conclusion, The Peninsula pointed out that the World Cup is strengthening the momentum in travel and tourism in Qatar and across the GCC region this year, noting that in the longer term, the infrastructure upgrade linked to the World Cup will attract foreign direct investment, helping fulfil some of the diversification goals charted in the National Vision 2030. For its part, Al-Watan said that the State of Qatar has occupied advanced positions internationally and regionally in the GovTech Maturity Index (GTEI) 2022 issued by the World Bank (WB) Group, stressing that this achievement was the result of great and intensive efforts by all entities in the State that worked as one team to achieve tangible progress in the field of digital transformation in the country, guided by the previous Qatar Digital Government Strategy, which has achieved impressive achievements, with the aspiration to launch a new strategy to bring about a quantum leap in Qatar's program towards digital transformation. The newspaper pointed out that the GovTech Maturity Index issued by the World Bank measures many indicators and elements that contribute to each country's journey towards digital transformation and the extent of its reliance on digital technologies in services and in all other fields, noting that Qatar's achievement of advanced positions internationally and regionally in the index affirms the progress it has made in this area, as Qatar ranked (A) in the group of highly developed countries with classification (A) and a maturity level of 87.4%, which is an extremely high significant level according to the World Bank, which evaluates the performance of countries worldwide in terms of digital transformation and GovTech maturity based on four groups (A, B, C and D). Whereas Group A represents the countries with an extremely high significant level in GovTech maturity and adoption of public sector digital transformation, Group B represents the countries that have achieved a high level in GovTech maturity and adoption of public sector digital transformation. In turn, Al-Raya newspaper said that Qatar has sought to build an active and safe digital technology sector that contributes to strengthening the national economy and consolidating its diversity, as part of its efforts to develop a digital society where all its members have equal opportunities to access technology and keep up with digital skills, leading to building smart Qatar. In this context, the country has worked to support research, innovation and pioneering spirit, in order to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Agenda 2030 for the benefit of all. The paper added that Qatar proves every day that it supports and encourages innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, as the Second National Development Strategy clearly identified the need to focus on knowledge and innovation as one of the most important key factors, in order to reach economic diversification. The paper noted that Qatar is always keen to shift to a knowledge-based economy and invest in digital technology as a vital sector that leads the national economy in the future, to present new digital opportunities, as well as work to develop and support digital capabilities in order to create an attractive environment for entrepreneurs. Qatar's efforts to establish a digital industry that makes it a hub for digital innovation in the region are not limited, but rather continue to encourage digital innovations and strategic partnerships with major international companies specialized in digital transformation. Al-Raya concluded that Qatar has made great strides in order to enable and accelerate the growth of local business in the field of information and communication technology in the country, and by establishing a strategic network of partners locally, to facilitate and improve the provision of services to digital companies, in addition to developing new platforms that would provide more vision for the partners of the system, and providing the opportunity to deal with international information and communication technology companies. (QNA)