Category: Board of Directors

His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani, Ph.D., is Chairman of Media City Qatar and Advisor to the Amiri Diwan.

He serves as Chair of the Executive Board and Vice Chairman of the Board of Regents at Qatar University, Vice Chair of the Board and Managing Director of Qatar Leadership Centre, and Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies. Dr. Al Thani is also Chairman of the Arab International Academy.

He sits on the board of Georgetown University, is a Life Member of the Baker Institute for Public Policy, and is on the International Advisory Council of the American University of Beirut.

Previously, he served as Vice President of Education at Qatar Foundation; he was the founding President of Hamad Bin Khalifa University; and he also led the strategic planning for the project to build Qatar National Library. He was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2011 for his contributions to education. In 2012, he received the Magisterio Prize for Education Leaders, presented by Her Majesty Queen Letizia of Spain, in recognition of his role as founding Chairman of the World Innovation Summit for Education.

A long-time patron of the arts, Dr. Al Thani was awarded the title of Commandeur, Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, by the Republic of France. He is the founder of Al Markhiya Gallery for Arab art and East Wing, a global platform for photography. He is active in supporting Qatar Museums’ cultural initiatives and is Chair of the Lusail Museum Advisory Committee.

Dr. Al Thani earned a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Southampton, a Master of Science from Colorado State University, and a Bachelor of Science from Qatar University, where he also taught engineering.

Her Excellency Lolwah bint Rashid bin Mohammed Al Khater was appointed Minister of Education and Higher Education in November 2024.

Her Excellency has held numerous leadership positions throughout her distinguished career. She was appointed as the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in 2018 and later as Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2019, concurrently serving as MOFA spokesperson. In 2023, she was named Minister of State for International Cooperation.

Currently, she serves as the Minister of Education and Higher Education,in addition to her role as the Vice Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of Qatar Museums and the Chairperson of the National Commission for Education, Culture, and Science.

Before assuming her current position, Her Excellency held the role of Minister Plenipotentiary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She also served as Director of Planning and Quality at the Qatar Tourism Authority and Director of Research Projects at Qatar Foundation. In addition, she was appointed as a board member of Media City Qatar in 2019 and serves as the Executive Director of the Doha Forum and Vice-Chairperson of the Qatar Fund for Development.

Beyond her official duties, Her Excellency is an active contributor to the academic and cultural sectors. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the College of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Georgetown University in Qatar. She has lectured at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and is a Research Associate at the Oxford Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Studies Forum at St. Antony’s College, University of Oxford. Additionally, she is a board member of the Institute for Palestine Studies.

As an independent public policy analyst, Her Excellency co-edited “Policy-Making in a Transformative State: The Case of Qatar”, published by Palgrave Macmillan, and authored “Educational Outputs and Labor Market Needs: A Study on Labor Market Issues and Methods of Addressing Them”, published by the General Secretariat of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Her achievements have been recognised internationally: she was awarded the Legion of Honour at the rank of “Knight,” the highest French national distinction, and in 2024, she received the “Champion of Humanitarian Diplomacy” award from the General Assembly of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM).

Her Excellency holds two master’s degrees—one in computer science and the other in public policy. Her research interests include Islam, modernity, and public policy development.

Dr. Hassan Mohammed Al Ansari is an Advisor at the Amiri Diwan of the State of Qatar. In addition to this important advisory role, Dr. Al Ansari is the Editor-in-Chief of the well-known English newspaper Qatar Tribune. Dr. Al Ansari’s commitment to positive change extends beyond journalism and his diverse professional responsibilities, as he is also an active member of the Board of Directors of the Qatar Society for Rehabilitation of Special Needs and the Qatar Special Needs Sports Federation.

Dr. Al Ansari has in-depth experience and knowledge of the history of the Arabian Gulf and the Middle East, as well as American studies, and has devoted much of his time to teaching these subjects to Qatar University students, and through his deep experience, insight, and commitment to many issues, he contributes to academia, journalism, and improving the conditions of society as a whole.

Dr. Al Ansari holds a Ph.D. in Middle Eastern History from Ann Arbor University in Michigan.

His Excellency Hassan Al Thawadi is the Secretary General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, the entity that coordinates Qatar’s government and private entities involved in the implementation of infrastructure and development projects for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar™ and was the Chairman of the National Organizing Committee for the 2022 FIFA World Cup™, the organizer of the events.

In July 2020, H.H. the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani appointed H.E. Al Thawadi as a member of the Board of Directors of Qatar Investment Authority. H.E. Al Thawadi also served as the General Counsel of the Qatar Investment Authority.

H.E. Al Thawadi holds positions on the boards of important national entities, including Katara Hospitality, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Northwestern University in Qatar, Qatar Museums, Qatar Railways, Qatar International Islamic Bank, and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research.

H.E. Al Thawadi studied law and graduated from the University of Sheffield in Britain. He speaks four languages (Arabic, English, Spanish and French).

Dr. Saud bin Abdullah Al Attiyah is the Deputy Undersecretary for Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Finance. He previously held the position of Director of Economic Policies and Research Department at the Ministry of Finance and was also in charge of managing the Public and Private Partnership Department from 2014.

Dr. Al Attiyah is a Board Member of Qatar Postal Services Company (Q-Post), Chairman of the Economic Diversification and Private Sector Development Strategy within the National Development Strategy 2018 – 2022, Vice Chairman of the Executive Technical Committee for improving the business environment at H.E. the Prime Minister’s office, Vice Chairman of Aspire Sport Accelerator, and has served as Chairman of Lusail Circuit Sports Club since 2015.

Previously, Dr. Al Attiyah served as Director of Legacy Department at the Supreme Committee for Legacy & Delivery from 2011 to 2014, and also as a member of various advisory and executive committees at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Aspire Zone, the Ministry of Public Health, and the Ministry of Education.

Dr. Al Attiyah holds a Doctorate of Business Administration from the Swiss Business School in Zurich, Switzerland, an Executive Master of Business Administration from HEC Paris (Winner of best Capstone project) and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Qatar University.

His Excellency Sheikh Jassim bin Mansour bin Jabor Al Thani was appointed Director of the Government Communications Office in 2021. Prior to this, from 2019 to 2021 he served as the Assistant Director of the JK Communications Office and before that, he was the Media Attaché in the United States of America from 2017 to 2019. In his role as the Media Attaché, he played a crucial role in strengthening the bilateral relationship between Italy and the United States by collaborating with key stakeholders.

H.E. Sheikh Jassim initially joined the Government Communications Office in 2014 and has been actively involved in supporting various ministries and government stakeholders with their media-related activities.

His Excellency holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and Media Studies from Northwestern University in Qatar.