Geneva Graduate Institute holds graduation ceremony with support from QFFD

The Geneva Graduate Institute has held a graduation ceremony with support from Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) to honour the significant accomplishments of the 2022 cohort of the executive programmes on Development Policies and Practices (DPP).

Some 80 graduates representing 39 nations now join the vibrant community of more than 900 alumni. In addition, the graduating class included 14 recipients of Qatar Scholarships Programme from nine developing countries. The strategic partnership between Qatar Scholarships Programme, Geneva Graduate Institute, and Hamad bin Khalifa University (HBKU) contributes to the programme’s commitment to increasing access to quality tertiary education by offering scholarships to the DPP-MENA executive programme. The DPP-MENA aims to prepare individuals to address challenges of social development in developing regional contexts and seeks to develop competencies, knowledge, and leadership skills in the participants. The ceremony was held in the presence and participation of Philippe Puyo, programe manager at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC); Ali Abdulla al-Dabbagh, deputy director general for planning of QFFD; Maria Jesus Alonso Lormand, director of the Service for International Solidarity of Presidential Department, Republic and State of Geneva; Jowhara Abdulazziz al-Suwaidi, acting chargé d'affaires of Permanent Mission of the State of Qatar in Geneva; Eliane Ballouhey, executive director of Geneva Graduate Institute; and Alexandre Dormeier Freire, programme director.Al-Dabbagh said, “QFFD is proud to have established the Qatar Scholarships Programme to minimise the gap and tackle the growing barriers that prevent access to tertiary education, hence we aim to increase the right to access quality education by offering scholarships to the most impressive emerging leaders from Least Developed Counties (LDCs).” Puyo said the DPP programme is about building the capacities of both institutions and people to provide solutions to local and global crises. Al-Suwaidi said, “Qatar's role has not been limited to providing humanitarian and development assistance, but it also plays an outstanding role in mediation for conflict resolution and crisis management through means of peaceful settlement, which contribute to strengthening regional and international security and stability and constitute a preventive way to avoid many humanitarian crises and mitigate their tragic effects.” She said Qatar is keen to host the second part of the ‘5th UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries’ in March 2023, which seeks to advance solutions to achieve sustainable development goals in developing countries. Lormand said, “During the programme, DPP students received tools, information, working methods, and a great network of professionals with whom they can continue to work. Whether they are in NGOs, academia, public or private institutions, it is the collaboration and effort of all of us that will help us move forward to make a fairer world.” Freire emphasised the strong ties that unite donors to the programme, saying that “DPP graduates are proponents of these values, and thanks to the skills, knowledge, and networks they have acquired during the programme, they are now better equipped to implement social change in their respective communities.” DPP Mena Region, Doha Hub representative at HBKU, Dr Evren Tok, highlighted that the DPP programme and HBKU “illustrate a best practice in hybrid education, which helps participants balance theory and practice in diverse ways.” Tok said, “The collaboration is an excellent representation of how interdisciplinary, analytical, and critical thinking could be taught, learned, and practice in today’s world.”