Hope in Action : The UNHCR–Qatar Partnership
Reading Time: 5 minutesA UNHCR staff member smiles with an internally displaced woman (IDP) inside her tent at an IDP gathering site near Kassala, Sudan. So far, 400 UNHCR tents have been erected at the site, which is expected to host some 800 families newly displaced by severe flooding in the region, as the rainy season sets in. © UNHCR/Aymen Alfadil Driving change for millions — how Qatar’s commitment to the world’s displaced is reshaping humanitarian response. By Aparajita Mukherjee Ahmed Mohsen, UNHCR Representative to the State of Qatar, in conversation with Business Leaders Qatar. BL Talk us through your career path. Ahmed Mohsen My career has been anchored in a strong commitment to human rights and advancing protection for forcibly displaced individuals. With academic degrees in international human rights law, international criminal justice, and risk, crisis, and disaster management, I have always believed that rigorous theory must be reinforced by practical field engagement. I began my journey with UNHCR as a volunteer in Cairo — an experience that shaped my understanding of community-based protection. Over the past two decades, I have served in complex operational contexts including Egypt, Eritrea, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, South Sudan, Sudan, and Syria, working across managerial, legal, protection and external relations functions. Before assuming my role as UNHCR Representative to Qatar in July 2023, I served as Deputy Representative to the GCC countries in Riyadh. BL As UNHCR Representative in Qatar — one of UNHCR’s top donors — what are the strategic priorities before you? Ahmed Mohsen UNHCR continues its efforts to sustain the long-standing strategic partnership with the State of Qatar and to expand collaboration with Qatari institutions. Qatar has long been one of UNHCR’s major donors, providing predictable and flexible contributions to life-saving programmes in the MENA region and beyond. The Office aims to expand engagement across Qatari NGOs, foundations, philanthropists, and the corporate sector — broadening collaboration to encompass resource mobilisation, advocacy, innovative financing, and sustainable humanitarian responses. “Qatar’s engagement goes beyond financial contributions — it reflects a broader approach grounded in international solidarity and responsibility-sharing.” — AHMED MOHSEN, UNHCR REPRESENTATIVE TO QATAR As winter grips Syria, displaced and returnee families continue to endure freezing conditions in damaged or inadequate shelters. UNHCR is on the ground providing winter kits and cash assistance to help the most vulnerable stay safe and warm. © UNHCR/Hameed Maarouf BL Qatar participated in the 2026 UNHCR Annual Pledging Conference in Geneva. Could you reflect on the pledge Qatar made? Ahmed Mohsen Qatar reaffirmed its support through a multi-year contribution for 2025–26, led by HE Jawhara bint Abdulaziz Al Suwaidi, Deputy Permanent Representative of Qatar to the UN. This renewed commitment comes at a time of growing humanitarian needs and widening funding gaps. For UNHCR, predictable and multi-year support is critical — it allows us to respond to immediate needs, plan more effectively, support durable solutions, and ensure continuity of assistance to the most vulnerable. BL Talk us through the National Asylum System MoU between UNHCR and Qatar. Ahmed Mohsen The MoU signed with Qatar’s Department of Human Rights at the Ministry of Interior signals a shift from access-based to system-based protection, enabling UNHCR to support the implementation of a nationally owned asylum framework aligned with international standards. This partnership positions UNHCR as a trusted technical adviser, incorporating international protection principles into Qatar’s legal and administrative systems. BL Qatar contributes to UNHCR operations in Sudan, Syria, Ukraine and for Rohingya refugees. What light can you throw on these contributions? Ahmed Mohsen Qatar’s overall contributions to UNHCR, exceeding US$440 million (QR1.6 billion) since 2010, have supported more than 9 million forcibly displaced people. These contributions fund education, healthcare, shelter, cash assistance, and livelihoods programmes — all essential to safeguarding the dignity of displaced populations. In 2025, contributions included: access to secondary healthcare for Syrian refugees in Jordan; cash assistance for displaced families in Yemen; core relief items in Chad, Djibouti, and Ghana; and cash and shelter assistance for returnees in Syria. UNHCR Distribution in Adra Saida Governorate in south Lebanon, UNHCR distributed core relief items to displaced families in a collective shelter in Saida. © UNHCR/Houssam Hariri UKRAINE RESPONSE In September 2025, UNHCR signed a US$5 million (QR18.2 million) agreement with Qatar Fund For Development (QFFD) to rehabilitate war-damaged homes and community infrastructure in Ukraine. Over 12 months, this will benefit more than 4,000 internally displaced persons and returnees — helping them return to safe and dignified living conditions. Since February 2022, close to 55,000 war-damaged homes have been repaired as part of UNHCR’s shelter programme. BL Qatar reaffirmed its support for UN refugee efforts in New York. Could you detail the ways Qatar would support this? Ahmed Mohsen During a meeting between HE Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al Thani, Qatar’s Permanent Representative to the UN, and UN High Commissioner Dr. Barham Salih in New York in March, Qatar reaffirmed its strong and sustained support for UNHCR’s mandate. Qatar emphasised its continued backing for humanitarian operations, readiness to support global initiatives for displaced communities, and engagement with multilateral partners to address regional displacement challenges. “The High Commissioner welcomed Qatar’s ongoing humanitarian contributions and its constructive role in collective responses to refugee crises worldwide.” — UNHCR, MARCH 2026 BL On a short- to medium-term roadmap for UNHCR in Qatar, what would be the focus action areas? Ahmed Mohsen The 2026 planning figure for forcibly displaced and stateless populations stands at 136 million. UNHCR’s proposed budget for 2026 is US$8.505 billion — a reduction of US$2.1 billion versus 2025, reflecting strategic prioritisation rather than reduced need. In Qatar, focus remains on partnerships and resource mobilisation. Top countries funded by Qatari partners include Yemen, Bangladesh, and Lebanon. UNHCR has expanded Islamic philanthropy tools, including the Refugee Zakat Fund and the Global Islamic Fund for Refugees (GIFR). Since 2018, Qatari private sector partners have contributed over US$130 million (QR473.2 million) to the Refugee Zakat Fund, assisting more than 3.3 million displaced Sudan : Forcibly displaced and host communities go back to school after two years of conflict. © UNHCR/Antonia Vadala
Qatar and the Wider GCC Are Becoming Central Nodes in Global Capital
Reading Time: 6 minutesLaura Merlini, Managing Director EMEA, CAIA Association, speaks exclusively to Business Leaders Qatar. CAIA Association’s landmark global study, The World Rewired, reveals how geopolitics, technology, and organisational change are reconstructing the architecture of capital markets — and why Qatar sits at the centre of it all. By Aparajita Mukherjee About the interviewee : Laura Merlini, Managing Director EMEA, CAIA Association. Leading regional strategy since 2012, and a senior alternatives professional and frequent speaker on governance, responsible investing, and industry trends. About the study: CAIA Association — a global network of investment professionals redefining the future of capital allocation — has released a new global study, The World Rewired, highlighting how the investment landscape is undergoing a “wholesale rewiring” as geopolitics, technology, and organisational capabilities reshape how capital is raised, allocated, and managed. BL: How is the investment landscape of today distinct from what it was five years back? Five years ago, most of us still assumed a world of low rates, ample liquidity, and relatively benign globalisation. Today, that framework no longer holds. We are operating with higher and more uncertain real rates, sharper geopolitical fault lines, and a more fragmented map of trade and capital flows. At the same time, what we used to call “alternatives” has moved to the centre of many institutional portfolios. Value creation and governance are increasingly happening in private markets, often long before a company considers listing — if it lists at all. Public and private markets are converging, which challenges traditional 60/40 thinking and pushes us toward a genuine total portfolio mindset. In developing The World Rewired report, we listened closely to senior leaders and CAIA members, and a consistent insight emerged: this is not just another cycle. The underlying logic of how markets work is shifting. BL: How does the troika of geopolitics, technology, and organisational capabilities impact the investment landscape? Geopolitics has moved from background noise to a core input in the investment process. It now influences which deals get done, where firms place talent, and how capital flows across regions. We see regional clusters of capital across the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and Latin America, each with distinct rules and sovereign priorities. Technology is the second force. Two innovations are racing toward the same goal of broadening access to private markets. Semi-liquid fund structures work within today’s infrastructure, while tokenised products could redefine that infrastructure entirely. Whether these approaches ultimately complement each other or collide remains an open question. The third force is organisational capability. Firms are moving toward flatter and more agile models to keep pace with regulatory and technological change. The skills gap is no longer just technical. It is about judgment under complexity, geopolitical awareness, and digital fluency. Many leaders quietly admit their organisations are not fully ready. BL: Coming to Qatar and the wider GCC, what is the outlook on investments and capital raising today? From an EMEA perspective, Qatar and the wider GCC are becoming central nodes in global capital — not peripheral markets. In Qatar, policy anchored in Vision 2030 is channelling capital into technology, health, education, and digital infrastructure, supported by the Qatar Investment Authority and development bank platforms. Recent forecasts point to real GDP growth of around 4 percent in 2025, and above 5 percent in 2026, driven by LNG expansion and diversification into advanced industries, logistics, the digital economy, and financial services. Across the Gulf, sovereign wealth funds have emerged as a new centre of gravity in state capital. In 2025, Gulf sovereign investors deployed approximately US$119 billion (QR422.16 billion) — roughly 43 percent of all capital invested by state-owned funds worldwide. By the end of that year, global sovereign wealth assets stood at around US$15 trillion (QR54.6 trillion), with Gulf-based funds accounting for an estimated US$6 trillion (QR21.8 trillion). When you raise capital from a Gulf sovereign fund, you are aligning with returns, national development, and geopolitical positioning at the same time. The architecture of this capital is also evolving — as seen in Abu Dhabi’s restructuring into a three-pole system with distinct global, industrial, and domestic development mandates. For global investors and issuers, the GCC offers deep and increasingly sophisticated capital, but it demands serious engagement with local mandates and governance. BL: What is the definition of long-term today, given that geopolitics is at its most delicate juncture? In this environment, “long term” is less a fixed number of years and more a mindset and governance choice. It means being willing to stay invested through policy shifts, technological disruption, and geopolitical episodes instead of reacting to every headline. Practically, that requires portfolios and institutions that can absorb shocks without being forced into pro-cyclical behaviour. Robust liquidity planning, diversified funding sources, and the thoughtful use of private markets across regions all play a critical role. We need scenario-based thinking and investment committees empowered to lean into dislocations when risk premia widen. That might include long-dated infrastructure, energy transition projects, or digital assets in reforming markets — always with managers who understand local complexity. Long-term today is about resilience and flexibility. BL: How will the IPO scenario be affected in this climate? Higher rates, valuation discipline, and geopolitical uncertainty have made IPO markets more cyclical and selective. The GCC illustrates this well. In 2025, IPOs in the region raised approximately US$5.1 billion (QR18.6 billion) from around 40 deals — a clear step down from US$13.2 billion (QR48.04 billion) in 2024, despite the number of listings remaining reasonably healthy. The engine is still there, but investors are more demanding on quality and pricing. Looking ahead, the outlook is cautiously positive. The GCC pipeline is broad — spanning energy-adjacent sectors, financials, logistics, technology, and consumer businesses supported by privatisations and family listings. Success will depend on timing, valuation, and post-listing execution. Crucially, IPOs are now one of several liquidity options. Many companies will remain private longer, funded by private equity, venture capital, and sovereign investors. That reinforces a key theme from The World Rewired — public and private markets are converging, and
