The National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) wrapped up the workers' right to health campaign held under the slogan "Healthy Workers for Sustainable Development."
The campaign was organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour, the Primary Health Care Corp (PHCC), the Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) office in Qatar, and the World Health Organisation (WHO) Country Office in Qatar.
During the closing ceremony held at the NHRC premises, HE Secretary-General of NHRC Sultan bin Hassan al-Jamali and Executive Director of the Workers' Support and Insurance Fund Kholoud Saif Abdullah al-Kubaisi handed the campaign's honorary shields and certificates to partners, stakeholders, participant company owners, and diaspora communities' representatives.
Al-Jamali stressed that protecting and enhancing workers' rights in the country is a continuous and an ongoing process, due to it being closely linked to achieving the Qatar National Vision 2030, which puts in place a comprehensive system of strategies, in which workers constitute the cornerstone.
He added that the state's endeavor to safeguard workers' rights is not limited to a certain event nor a limited timeframe, rather it is an embodiment of a message and future vision of ensuring a decent life and protecting human dignity, adding that workers who enjoy their right to health form the foundation for achieving sustainable development and are the catalysts to a nation's development and a people's civilisation.
He expressed pride in NHRC partners' effective participation in the campaign, adding that it is a step towards establishing an intensive joint action strategy together with the UN House in Doha, which will be set in upcoming weeks through roundtable meetings involving all UN House in Doha-affiliated offices.
Al-Jamali extended gratitude to partners for their contributions to NHRC's supreme mission of protecting and promoting human rights, praising their voluntary initiatives as indicative of openness towards cooperation and fostering comprehensive societal rights.
He also thanked all stakeholders, including owners of companies, large factories, small industries, and diaspora communities with high shares in Qatar's labour market, stressing that their positive participation reflects their deep understanding of the importance of educating their workers, part of their fundamental rights.
In turn, Assistant Director of Occupational Safety and Health Department at the Ministry of Labour Saad Rashid al-Nabit emphasised the ministry's commitment to participate and contribute to the campaign's success, with the aim of enhancing occupational safety and health, and raising both employer and employee's awareness of the need for a safe and healthy work environment, calling for further coordination on this constructive partnership.
For his part, senior legal adviser at PHCC Dr Abdulhadi Hazaa Abdulhadi Derah praised the NHRC campaign raising employer and employee's awareness of workers' right to health and its impact on sustainable development. Derah affirmed that the establishment of NHRC reflects Qatar's commitment to consolidating and enhancing rights and freedoms.
WHO Representative in Qatar Dr Rayana Bou Haka said that the campaign highlighted specific programmes such as that on occupational health and safety, in addition to bolstering health for all, particularly for workers.
Dr Bou Haka emphasised that the campaign's success hinges on its ability to raise workers and employers' awareness of rights and responsibilities, noting plans for executable future strategies to reinforce the right to health.
She added that the WHO office in Qatar, together with health sector partners, focuses on the significance of occupational health and workplace safety to enhance health and mitigate risks that could impact workers.
QRCS-affiliatd Al Hemailah Workers' Health Centre Director Mohamed Morhaf al-Akshar said that this campaign is only a part of a series of efforts carried out by Qatar to enhance workers' rights and maintain society's health as a whole. Al-Akshar also praised the efforts of all parties involved to ensure the campaign's success.
