News | Ministry of Transport

Monday, March 26, 2018

Minister Witnesses Signing of Minutes of Joint Committee Meeting

Khartoum– SudanHE Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti and his Sudanese counterpart HE Minister of Transportation, Roads and Bridges Eng. Makawi Mohamed Awad today witnessed the signing of the minutes of the meeting of the joint committee on developing and managing the Sudanese Port of Suakin.Mr. Hassan bin Hassan Al Hail, chairman of the joint committee on transport with the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC), and the Director General of Sudan’s Maritime Ports Authority Dr. Abdul Hafiz Saleh Ali, signed the minutes of the meeting. The event was attended by Qatar’s Ambassador to Sudan HE Mr. Rashid Bin Abdul Rahman Al Nuiami.The minutes of the meeting, signed this morning at the premises of Sudan’s Ministry of Transportation, Roads and Bridges, outlines a future roadmap for cooperation and general frameworks for partnership.HE Minister Al-Sulaiti stressed the strength of Qatari-Sudanese relations for which the foundations were laid down by HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and HE the Sudanese President Omer Hassan al-Bashir.This step, he added, would bring back Suakin Port’s historic glory and make it a maritime commercial gateway and a key, vital economic platform in the region.Saukin Port, the minister said, has comparative advantages and is supporting exports significantly, especially the economies of the African region. He also stressed its importance and vital, strategic location, its connection to the Silk Road and uniqueness for being a very important meeting point for exportation, particularly for neighboring countries, which makes it a value added to the economies.He emphasized that the Port’s development works would move at an accelerated pace to finalize the Port’s rehabilitation and development by 2020, taking into account applying world’s latest technologies for operations, as well as environment standards.Starting this April as a beginning for cooperation, he said, a maritime route would be launched between Hamad Port and Suakin Port to ship Sudanese livestock, stressing that the minutes of the meeting included a powerful economic cooperation in the interest of both brotherly countries.HE Minister Awad hailed the Qatari role that is supportive of Sudan in all fields, nothing that it had contributed to the country’s progress and economic development. He said the minutes of the meeting came within the framework of successful strategic partnerships between the two brotherly countries.Mr. Awad said the project would provide high-quality services to all vessels on the Red Sea, as Suakin Port is a new seaport for Africa and an investment source to be producing economic benefits for Sudan and serving the two countries’ interests. It would also provide Sudan with opportunities for training, capacity building and investment in all maritime transport areas, he noted.

Saturday, March 24, 2018

Ministry Obtains ISO 90012015 Quality Certification

Doha – QatarThe Ministry of Transport and Communications has obtained its ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Systems certification from the British Standards Institution (BSI).The certification, maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), is a globally recognized metric validating the quality of an institution’s management, planning and quality systems.MOTC was awarded the certification following an intensive, all-out external audit from BSI team, who, after conducting a review of all processes, saw to what extent MOTC’s administrative system is complaint to internationally recognized standards and practices.This achievement corresponds to MOTC’s strategy for building a safe, sustainable and efficient transportation system capable of providing unique services. The Ministry also works on developing Qatar’s ICT sector in line with best standards and quality systems worldwide.“Obtaining this well-known certification is a new achievement added to a series of MOTC accomplishments. It reflects MOTC’s effort and hard work toward its employees to continue upgrading and promoting all departments to hit new levels of success,” said HE Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti.This certification, he added, “proves MOTC is committed to implementing the highest quality standards and best management practices with a view to supporting its strategy that aims to provide better services.”

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

Ministry’s Digital Incubation Center Launches "Make the Deal 2"

Doha-QatarUnder the patronage and with the attendance of HE Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al-Sulaiti, the Digital Incubation Center (DIC) under MOTC launched the second edition “Make the Deal 2.”The event was attended by a number of senior officials, Qatari investors and technology companies interested in making investment deals to support entrepreneurs. It brought them together with at least nine local tech startups within the framework of the final stage of “Make the Deal 2” event. Some of those startups are already incubated at the DIC. The event was attended by several entrepreneurs who are passionate about ICT.The final stage followed trainings for up to 20 startups working on Qatari market. The top nine of them were selected and did attend special training and evaluation sessions for five days where mentorship and guidance experts screened their business ideas and prepared them to pitch these ideas before potential investors.Organized yesterday at the DIC premises at MOTC, the event featured the official launch of the Doha club for angel investors in the field of technology; Doha Tech Angels. The club so far includes 15 angel investors with significant experience in the field of technology and successful business management such as Dr. Hessa Al Jaber, Dr. Nasser Marafih, Dr. Shiekha Al Jaber and others. DTA has already invested in a number of startups in Qatar. The club also provides funding, expertise, networking and mentorship in order to help startups flourish and grow.“DIC aims to provide a platform for entrepreneurs in Qatar to develop technology-based companies that serve the main five sectors of transportation, environment, logistics, healthcare and sports in consistency with the TASMU Smart Qatar Program,” said HE MOTC’s Assistant Undersecretary for Digital Society Development Affairs Ms. Reem Al-Mansoori.

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

TASMU Smart Qatar Program Participates in QF’s ARC’18

Doha – QatarThe TASMU Smart Qatar Program participates in the 7th edition of the Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference 2018 (ARC'18), organized by QF on March 19-20 at the Qatar National Convention Center.TASMU has an interactive booth at the exhibition organized at the sidelines of the conference, where a specialized TASMU team are there to explain the program’s vision, mission, objectives and its focus on harnessing the power of technology and innovation to drive sustainable economic diversification, improve the quality of life and enhance the delivery of public services across priority sectors.The booth also displays some of the smart solutions and projects TASMU had already pitched to local and foreign companies and entrepreneurs aiming to further improve the quality of life in Qatar and address national challenges in TASMU’s five top priority sectors; Transportation, Logistics, Environment, Healthcare and Sports.“TASMU’S main reason of participation is to reinforce its partnership with the eco-system of research and academia. Sharing with them the national challenges of the five sectors and guiding them toward innovating for them through applied research,” said HE MOTC’s Assistant Undersecretary for Digital Society Development Affairs Ms. Reem Al-Mansoori. She added; “TASMU along with the Qatar Digital Cluster will work on creating the full cycle ecosystem for smoother collaboration from research and academia parties to connect with government challenges and have access to collaborate with technology partners.”TASMU, along with other planned digital enterprises, is expected to generate some QR40 billion for Qatari economy over the next five years, and to accelerate job creation growth in the ICT industry at a rate of 10% annually.TASMU is designed to accelerate the achievement of all the pillars of the Qatar National Vision 2030. It will serve as a platform for the realization of a digital economy and smart future.TASMU aims to reduce road network delays by 20%, lower road fatalities to 6 per 100,000 and achieve a 10% reduction in average vehicle trip emissions.It also aims to cut import costs by 50%, raise Qatar’s Logistics Performance Index to 12th and increase GDP contribution of logistics to 10%.Environmentally, TASMU wants to reduce energy and water consumption per capita by 20% and 35% respectively, and produce 40% of overall food consumed locally.At healthcare level, the program seeks to reduce obesity rate by 5%, smoking rate by 30% and improve access to medical attention.TAMSU also aims to develop capabilities to manage sporting events for up to 150,000 visitors annually, rank in the top 50 in the Olympics and achieve 40% active population.

Monday, March 19, 2018

Hamad Port Hits One Million Containers Mark

Doha – QatarHamad Port today held a ceremony to mark the handling of its first one million TEUs, well ahead of its expected schedule.This rapid increase in the container handling business at Hamad Port demonstrates its operational efficiency and relentless efforts toward holding a leading position among key regional and global ports according to the plan overseen by the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC). This achievement, under the current exceptional circumstances, would not have been possible without HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani’s vision and HE Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani’s unlimited support, said HE Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti in his remarks at the ceremony. The Prime Minister’s directives, he added, played a key role in enhancing the ranking of the port and transforming it into a key regional logistics hub, despite being relatively new.In such a record short time, he explained, Hamad Port today marks the handling of one million TEUs coming from regional and global seaports via 22 direct navigation routes and around 120 navigation destinations.The synergy of efforts among all stakeholders has played a key role in boosting productivity and accelerating handling operations, thereby raising the port’s competitiveness in terms of the time consumed in stevedoring services, the Minister said, addressing the event that was attended by multiple stakeholders, navigation route representatives and shipping agencies. Work will continue towards further achievements and thus generate more support for the national economy, as well as for providing fast, effective services at the port, the Minister said. Hamad Port, he added, has proved highly capable of not only flexibly handling the logistics challenges that have emerged from the current circumstances, but also overcoming them efficiently, let alone its significant contribution to bolstering Qatar’s marine trade and overall development strategies.“The shipping routes that have been launched between Hamad Port and regional and international ports have provided additional reliable options and solutions for customers, playing a significant role in enhancing container handling operations and boosting trade via the Port,” said Qatar Ports Management Company (Mwani Qatar) CEO Captain Abdulla Al-Khanji.Mwani Qatar, he added, “continues supporting the establishment of Hamad Port’s network of navigation routes and broadening the services provided to customers according to the plan that MOTC oversees.”Mwani Qatar along with partners has successfully launched 22 direct shipping routes between Hamad Port and several regional and international seaports and some 120 navigation destinations. The most recent was a new service from South Korean shipping line Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) as part of the S. Korea-Middle East Express (KME) service.Since inaugurated, Hamad Port has been making headlines with widely recognized success stories in a record short time, and has significantly enhanced its share of regional trade volume in the Middle East.

Sunday, March 18, 2018

Ministry Holds Workshop on Government Enterprise Agreement with Microsoft 1.1

Doha – QatarThe Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) has organized a workshop on renewing the Government Enterprise Agreement signed between the Government of Qatar, represented by MOTC, and Microsoft.The framework agreement, which was renewed for another three years, aims to secure technology needs for government entities in order to further enhance efficiency and advance the digital transformation agenda across all government sectors.The renewal covers all Microsoft software licenses used in enrolled government entities, including computer and server licenses such as Windows Servers, Exchange Servers, SQL Servers and other licenses and products.Subscriptions for government entities to the Microsoft Azure Cloud Computing Platform have also been renewed.“Public-private partnerships contribute to supporting and implementing the vision of the Government of Qatar for the transformation into a smart, digital government,” said Mr. Hassan Jassim Al-Sayed, MOTC’s Assistant Undersecretary of the Government Information Technology Sector.He added that MOTC “doesn’t look at this agreement as an ordinary contract with a global company, but rather considers it as a real partnership and an active tool for boosting digital transformation across all government entities and for improving the quality of government services provided to all citizens, residents and visitors.”He noted that Qatar was among the very first countries in the Middle East to have signed framework agreements with Microsoft, realizing the benefits of keeping up with the latest technologies at competitive prices away from price fluctuations worldwide.The renewed agreement has multiple new features. Government entities will be able to use cloud computing safely particularly in multifactor authentications, as well as the feature that is designed to help classify and protect all files and documents from leakage and theft. Another important feature is the Exchange Online Protection (EOP) that helps keep emails safe. ‘Microsoft Teams’ has been also enabled to provide a chat-based collaboration product for better project management. Its main function is to facilitate teamwork and promote productivity through facilitating chat, project management, and extensive integration.The renewed agreement also gives government entities access to Exchange servers for emails and SharePoint servers to build online portals, as well as Skype servers for an unlimited number of government entities.