New york: HE Undersecretary of the Ministry of Labour, Sheikha Najwa bint Abdulrahman Al-Thani, today played a leading role at a significant side event entitled "Advancing Fair Recruitment to Achieve the Doha Declaration: From Commitment to Action", convened alongside the Second International Migration Review Forum in New York.
According to Qatar News Agency, in her address, Her Excellency underscored the extraordinary timeliness of this assembly, noting that the international community must now move decisively beyond perfunctory declarations towards a resolute commitment to tangible, measurable, and sustainable implementation. She emphasised that such a paradigm shift is essential to fortifying the global governance of labour mobility and embedding the imperatives of fairness, accountability, and partnership at the very heart of international migration governance.
Opening her remarks, Her Excellency highlighted that the Doha Dialogue was conceived on the critical premise that labour mobility governance transcends bilateral exchanges between countries of origin and destination. Instead, it necessitates a collective multilateral responsibility, predicated on enduring trust-building, structured knowledge-sharing, and the formulation of practical, adaptive responses to the shifting dynamics of regional and global labour markets. Since its inception, the Dialogue has been instrumental in fostering deeper mutual understanding between Gulf Cooperation Council States and their African counterparts, while progressively transitioning from broad policy dialogue to targeted engagement with pressing implementation challenges.
Within this context, Her Excellency reaffirmed Qatar's steadfast conviction that fair recruitment transcends regulatory ambitions to become a foundational pillar safeguarding human dignity, stabilising labour relations, mitigating vulnerabilities to exploitation, and enabling safer, more transparent, and equitable conditions for labour mobility.
She further delineated Qatar's comprehensive and integrated policy framework, meticulously developed over recent years to translate these principles into operational realities. This framework encompasses the rigorous regulation of recruitment processes, enhanced contractual transparency, broadened legal protections for workers, robust dispute resolution mechanisms, expanded access to justice, and the ongoing modernisation of services tailored to both workers and employers.
Complementing these national endeavours, Her Excellency highlighted the intrinsic interdependence between the efficacy of fair recruitment systems and the quality of international cooperation. She observed that genuine and lasting progress hinges on institutional coherence, alignment around shared guiding principles, and strengthened coordination among States, ensuring that labour mobility frameworks are both rights-based and responsive to the development priorities of all stakeholders.
Moreover, Her Excellency stressed that the true efficacy of any international framework resides not merely in its formulation but in its capacity to yield measurable and sustainable impact. In this regard, she drew attention to the pressing need for clear implementation instruments, robust monitoring systems, and resilient institutional partnerships capable of transforming commitments into concrete and enduring outcomes.
She further emphasised that effective implementation demands a holistic and harmonised approach: reinforcing regulatory and procedural frameworks to uphold transparency and integrity; enhancing information-sharing and inter-State collaboration; deepening stakeholder awareness while ensuring rigorous compliance; and sustaining investment in national capacity-building alongside the systematic exchange of best practices. Collectively, these interlinked efforts constitute the vital conduit bridging policy conception and tangible realisation.
Building upon this foundation, Her Excellency acknowledged that this side event represents a pivotal waypoint within the sustained continuum of engagement fostered by the Doha Dialogue, while simultaneously charting the trajectory for its forthcoming developmental phase. The accompanying action plan encapsulates this forward momentum, drawing on the successes of the 2024 Dialogue and laying a robust groundwork for the next edition slated for October 2026.
HE Undersecretary Sheikha Najwa bint Abdulrahman Al-Thani also took a pivotal role at a distinguished side event entitled "Protecting Migrant Workers from Exploitation and Human Trafficking: Integrating Institutional Frameworks and Strengthening Community Partnerships," convened within the ambit of the Second International Migration Review Forum in New York.
Co-hosted by the State of Qatar and the Republic of Uzbekistan, this high-level forum served as a vital conduit for the exchange of specialised knowledge, exemplary practices, and pragmatic strategies aimed at fortifying protections for migrant workers against exploitation and trafficking. The discourse centred on enhancing institutional alignment, advancing victim protection frameworks, and deepening cooperative partnerships between countries of origin and destination-cornerstones for fostering migration that is safe, orderly, and anchored in respect for human dignity.
Her Excellency underscored that safeguarding migrant workers transcends policy imperatives to embody a profound humanitarian mandate necessitating coordinated action across national and international spheres. She emphasised the indispensable role of robust international collaboration in crafting migration governance frameworks that uphold the fundamental rights and intrinsic dignity of all migrants.
Turning to Qatar's bilateral engagement, Her Excellency expressed sincere appreciation for the Republic of Uzbekistan's partnership, characterising it as a paradigm of mutual commitment to protecting migrant rights across the entire migration continuum.
She also acknowledged the critical contributions of the International Organization for Migration and the community of expert stakeholders, whose unwavering dedication continues to propel forward multilateral cooperation in this domain of vital importance.
In articulating the ethical dimensions of migrant worker protection, Her Excellency advocated for an integrated, multisectoral approach that mobilises national and international institutions, governments of both labour-sending and labour-receiving countries, civil society, the private sector, and migrant communities themselves.
Detailing Qatar's comprehensive national framework to combat human trafficking, she highlighted legislative enhancements, strengthened coordination mechanisms, and a victim-centred philosophy embedded throughout all stages of case management.
Her Excellency further spotlighted the expansion of victim support services, including safe accommodation, healthcare, legal aid, and psychosocial support, complemented by a national referral mechanism designed to ensure expedited access to critical services and to foster enhanced cooperation with sending countries and international partners.
She noted with emphasis that Qatar's efforts have evolved beyond policy conception to full-scale implementation, continually refined to align with the highest international standards and best practices.
The forum's deliberations illuminated essential elements of a resilient protection system-ranging from guaranteeing comprehensive access to services and reinforcing institutional coordination via referral pathways, to facilitating the transnational exchange of effective, adaptable practices.
Moreover, Her Excellency underscored the indispensable role of multi-stakeholder partnerships, uniting governments, international organisations, civil society, and migrant communities in a shared endeavour to advance justice and safeguard the most vulnerable.
Her Excellency concluded by emphatically reaffirming Qatar's unwavering conviction that the enduring protection of migrant workers rests upon sustained, synergistic partnerships between labour-sending and labour-receiving countries. The organisation of this event, in close collaboration with the Republic of Uzbekistan, not only exemplifies this fundamental principle but also acts as a powerful catalyst for advancing practical initiatives that bolster the effective implementation of the Global Compact for Migration.