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Doha: Qatar has achieved most of the targets of the Second National Development Strategy (2018- 2022), President of Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA) H E Dr. Saleh bin Mohammed Al Nabit said. He said the authority has started work on preparing the third strategy (2023-2030).
In an interview with Qatar News Agency (QNA), Dr. Al Nabit said the preliminary results regarding the implementation of Qatar’s Second National Development Strategy 2018- 2022, which is scheduled to end this year, indicate that many goals and desired results have been achieved.
Although it was exposed to abnormal conditions, most notably the fluctuation of oil prices and the economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, it achieved a good percentage of its goals and results.
Regarding implementation of the completion of the next strategy, Dr. Al Nabit confirmed that the work teams and executive committees assigned to each sector have begun intensive work to prepare the Third National Development Strategy for Qatar, and great strides have been made in this context.
The major process of preparing this strategy is an extension of the strategic planning in Qatar to fulfil the Qatar National Vision 2030 and its development pillars, under the direct supervision and chairmanship of Prime Minister and Minister of Interior H E Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani, Chairman of the Supreme Committee for the Preparation of the Third National Development Strategy for Qatar, with the participation of all public and private sectors, the PSA President said.
Dr. Al Nabit noted that Qatar’s Third National Development Strategy is based on the results of the previous strategies and takes into account the data and achievement rates, whether in terms of the goals they achieved or the challenges they faced. He added that they have ensured that this strategy is based on possible best practices to be objective and actionable, and will achieve Qatar’s sustainability goals.
On the International Monetary Fund’s increased forecast for Qatar’s economic growth in 2022 to 3.4 percent, compared to a previous forecast of 3.2 percent, Dr. Al Nabit said these expectations were based on realistic readings that were made by the Fund in coordination with the Authority, especially as the Qatari economy has the strength and durability to achieve good levels of growth even under unfavourable conditions.
He pointed out that the investment climate in the country is good, stressing on the need to work continuously to improve the investment environment and increase its attractiveness, especially foreign direct investment. In response to a question about the high rates of inflation in Qatar, he said inflation is a global phenomenon that most countries suffer from, but fortunately, the inflation in Qatar is lower than international rates, as annual inflation rate in Qatar edged slightly lower to 4.98 percent in July of 2022, while the euro area annual inflation rate was 8.9 percent in the same month. Inflation in the UK hit 10.1 percent on an annual basis in the same period, while in the United States it reached 8.5 percent in July 2022.
Regarding the new PSA publications, he said there is a continuous development and updating of new publications to deal with various authorities. He highlighted two new publications which are the “Statistical Communication Strategy” concerned with establishing a joint working mechanism between the PSA as the state body tasked with providing official statistics in Qatar, and all other parties concerned with statistics in Qatar and abroad.
Dr. Al Nabit said these documents set a specific framework for dealing with data and other parties, and specific plans and timelines as well as written, agreed and explained steps.
He said PSA holds workshops to familiarise other parties with these steps and to ensure that these determinants continue to be used.
The PSA President said the authority works closely with other relevant authorities specialised in preparing data inside and outside the country to obtain the best practice in terms of collection, analysis, preservation and dissemination, including big data.
In this context, he said the PSA will organise a regional workshop on the changing role of official statistics in Qatar in September. Local, regional and international institutions, experts and statistical agencies will participate. Its agenda will include the strategy for preparing data and how to deal with it.
Dr, Al Nabit called on researchers and specialists to benefit from the various publications issued by the authority, especially as they constitute a true reflection of the reality of the Qatari society and economy, and are available periodically and updated on its website.
