International Civil Defence meet begins in Doha today

Doha will host the 51st Executive Council meeting and 23rd General Assembly of the International Civil Defence Organisation (ICDO) for three days from today. A number of ministers and senior officials from 48 countries will take part in the event which will discuss a number of topics related to the organisation’s line of work, its development, internal laws and future plans.
The event will witness a field exercise by Qatar’s General Directorate of Civil Defence in collaboration with the Search and Rescue team of Lekhwiya at Ras Laffan Emergency College. The details were announced at a meeting yesterday by the General Directorate of Civil Defence Director General Brigadier Abdullah Mohamed al-Suwaidi, ICDO Secretary-General Vladimir Kuvshinov and Deputy Secretary-General Belkacem Elketroussi.
Al-Suwaidi said field exercise will have the participation of all the specialised entities in Qatar. He explained that the exercise, aimed to highlight the great capabilities of Qatar in the humanitarian field, will be attended by observer countries Singapore, Turkey, India, Australia, Kuwait, Oman and Jordan. ICDO Secretary-General Kuvshinov said the meeting will also give a chance for the participants to take a close look at the civil defence facilities in Qatar and its great potential in this field.
Deputy Secretary-General Elketroussi described the event as a “historical meeting”, as it is held for the first time in the Arab region.