Tribune News Network
Doha
The Doha International Family Institute (DIFI), a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), held a seminar titled ‘Family Policies and Sustainable Development’ in cooperation with the Permanent Mission of Qatar to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Friday in Paris.
The collaboration comes as part of the organisation’s efforts to support and contribute to family issues at all levels by helping to place the subject at the top of policy makers’ agenda around the world.
Dr. Sharifa Noaman al Emadi, Executive Director, DIFI, said: "We believe that the family is a main factor in achieving the sustainable development agenda, and should be present in the national development policies and programmes that strive to fulfil the Sustainable Development Goals. This belief not only comes from DIFI’s vision and mission, but has also been proven by scientific evidence.
"Our collaboration with the Permanent Mission of Qatar to the UNESCO highlights the centrality of family policies in achieving the objectives of 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and emphasises the priority of family approach in the design of programmes.
"During the Paris seminar, we highlighted the importance of family policies in achieving sustainable development, focusing on three main themes – fertility policies, work-family balance policies, and marital rehabilitation programs – and their importance at national, regional, and international levels.”
The first session addressed fertility policies and fertility rates both globally and in the Arab world, while the second session highlighted work-family balance and its role in the sustainability of the marriage institution. The last session discussed marital rehabilitation programmes and their impact on family cohesion.
Concluding with practical recommendations, the seminar aimed to serve as an interactive platform that brought experts, researchers, and civil society institutions together to broaden thought horizons and to examine pressing contemporary issues related to family policies and sustainable development.
DIFI is a global policy and advocacy institute working to advance knowledge on Arab families through research and promote evidence-based polices at a national, regional, and international level. The institute has special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.