Source: Government of Qatar
Geneva, December 02, 2025
The State of Qatar participated Tuesday in the 2026 Annual Pledging Conference of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva.
Deputy Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the UN Office in Geneva Jawhara bint Abdulaziz Al Suwaidi represented the State of Qatar at the conference.
In her speech on behalf of the State of Qatar during the conference, Al Suwaidi voiced the State of Qatar’s deep appreciation for the great efforts made by HE Filippo Grandi during his leadership of the UNHCR over the past ten years, and for his outstanding contributions to strengthening the protection of refugees and coordinating international humanitarian work, expressing the State of Qatar’s wishes for his success in his future duties.
She added that the UNHCR’s 2026 Global Appeal makes it clear that the refugee and displacement crisis facing our world today is still ongoing, with more than 136 million people needing assistance and protection by the end of 2026.
She stressed that this crisis coincides with numerous challenges, especially the continued deterioration of the humanitarian situation of refugees and displaced persons due to new conflicts, the failure to resolve long-standing crises, and the financial crisis facing the United Nations and its various agencies and funds, including the UNHCR, which threatens the continuity of essential life-saving programs.
She stressed the importance of continuing to strengthen international solidarity to address the root causes of displacement and asylum, providing sufficient resources to meet urgent humanitarian needs, supporting host countries, and working to find permanent and sustainable solutions for refugees. She emphasized that achieving peace and ending conflicts are the best way to end the suffering of millions of displaced persons and refugees around the world.
She indicated that the State of Qatar is keen to consolidate its strategic partnership with the UNHCR. She noted that the first high-level strategic dialogue between the two sides was held in May, which resulted in the signing of three agreements: the first to provide USD 8 million to support the UNHCR budget for 2025-2026, the second to provide USD 3 million to support the UNHCR health program in Jordan to enable Syrian refugees to access health care, and the third to provide cash assistance to about 2,500 of the most vulnerable people in Yemen.
Al Suwaidi noted the State of Qatar’s continued contributions to supporting refugees and displaced persons and alleviating their suffering around the world without any discrimination, in addition to its diplomatic efforts and humanitarian mediations aimed at reducing conflicts and promoting peace. She pointed out that, based on the State of Qatar’s firm stance towards the Palestinian cause and following the signing of the document to end the war in Gaza during the Sharm El Sheikh Summit, an air and land bridge was established in support of the fraternal Palestinian people, in response to emergency needs, and to alleviate the suffering of affected families.
The Deputy Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the UN Office in Geneva said that January witnessed the opening of the Hope City residential project in northern Syria to house those affected by the crises, in partnership between Qatar Charity and the Turkish Humanitarian Relief Foundation, to provide decent housing for hundreds of displaced families returning to Syria.
She added that in Sudan, the State of Qatar, through the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD), launched a humanitarian initiative in the Ouaddai region of eastern Chad to assist around 2,000 refugee families affected by the war. It also signed an agreement in October 2024 with the UNHCR worth USD 2 million to provide basic assistance in South Sudan to around 240,000 people who fled the conflict in Sudan. She noted that the State of Qatar also delivered a new shipment of relief and humanitarian aid to the city of Al Dabbah in the Northern State.
She also indicated that in Ukraine, the State of Qatar, represented by the QFFD, signed an agreement with the UNHCR in September worth USD 5 million to rehabilitate social infrastructure. She noted that the State of Qatar continues its efforts to reunite children affected by the conflict with their families.
Al Suwaidi noted that in July, Qatari mediation succeeded in signing the Doha Declaration of Principles between the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Congo River Alliance “March 23 Movement”, in an important step towards achieving peace and security and the safe and dignified return of refugees and displaced persons to their homes. She noted that, as part of ongoing efforts to improve health conditions in the Rohingya refugee camps in the Cox’s Bazar region, which host more than one million refugees facing harsh living and humanitarian conditions, the State of Qatar launched a new humanitarian project in August aimed at improving and expanding the quality of health services at the Rohingya refugee field hospital in Bangladesh, ensuring the continuity of basic and specialized health care services for refugees and host communities.
Concluding her remarks, Deputy Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the UN Office in Geneva Jawhara bint Abdulaziz Al Suwaidi reiterated the State of Qatar’s firm commitment to shared humanitarian values, support for multilateral humanitarian action, and the promotion of partnerships that uphold human dignity, provide protection, and support sustainable solutions for refugees and displaced persons worldwide.