Doha: HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, attended the opening day of Jadal, Al-Mujadilah Center and Mosque for Women’s annual research summit. The summit is designed to build and extend research networks on topics related to the contemporary challenges and lived realities of Muslim women around the world. Jadal was also attended by HE Minister of Social Development and Family Buthaina bint Ali Al Jabr Al Nuaimi, and other distinguished guests and dignitaries.
According to Qatar News Agency, the event, held at Al-Mujadilah, has welcomed over 100 delegates from North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. It brings together Muslim women scholars, researchers, and practitioners from across the globe and provides a home for international female Muslim scholarship. The summit’s 2026 strategic theme, ‘Muslim Women Navigating Theology, Ethics, and Society’, is being explored by the attendees.
The summit focuses on the role of Muslim women within the Islamic intellectual tradition and examines how they draw from this heritage to navigate and respond to contemporary challenges. Through dialogue, research, and public engagement, Jadal continues to advance scholarship rooted in faith, lived experience, and global perspectives.
Opening remarks were delivered by Executive Director of Al-Mujadilah, Dr. Sohaira Siddiqui, who emphasized the importance of bridging scholarly knowledge and community life. She highlighted the need for research that is both rigorous and accessible, and for institutions that place Muslim women at the center of knowledge production, ethical inquiry, and public engagement. Dr. Siddiqui underscored Jadal’s role as a space for dialogue, debate, and collective reflection, where theology, ethics, and lived experience come together to address the realities shaping Muslim women’s lives today.
During the summit, a new partnership between the Ministry of Social Development and Family and Al-Mujadilah was officially launched, marking a shared commitment to highlighting women’s contributions in Islam across history and in contemporary life. The partnership will deliver a series of public initiatives aimed at deepening understanding of women’s roles in shaping knowledge, community, and society, grounded in faith, values, and lived experience.
Also launched during Jadal was ‘More Muslim’, a new narrative audio documentary podcast exploring the Muslim experience in all its complexity and depth. Produced by Al-Mujadilah, the series centers on the lived experiences of Muslim women, sharing thoughtful, layered stories that illuminate faith, culture, and belonging beyond simplified narratives.
Throughout the three days of Jadal 2026, panels and sessions are exploring themes including women’s agency and ethical leadership in Islamic history and civilization, as well as their normative authority and intellectual contributions from the inception of Islam to the present day. Discussions span a wide range of fields, including ethical business, urban belonging, media, spiritual wellbeing, post-colonial legal reforms, classical Islamic legal theology, and bioethics.