Qatar’s Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) has formalized agreements for the construction and operation of four new private schools, marking a significant step in expanding the country’s private education sector. The contracts were signed on October 22, involving national companies that won earlier tenders overseen jointly by the Public Works Authority (Ashghal), the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI), and MoEHE.
The signing ceremony was attended by HE Minister of Education and Higher Education Lolwah bint Rashid AlKhateer, HE Minister of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal al-Thani, Eng. Mohammed bin Abdulaziz alMeer, President of Ashghal, and other officials and school representatives. Omar Abdulaziz al-Nuaimi, assistant undersecretary for Private Education Affairs at MoEHE, signed the contracts on behalf of the government.
Representatives of the four private schools included Brai Muid Suiddiq of Indian Islamic School in Al Wukair, which follows the Indian curriculum; Dr. Hamad Mubarak al-Kaabi of Cardiff International School in Al Wukair, which follows the Egyptian curriculum; Mohammed Nizar of Pearl Podar School in Al Mansoura, following the Indian curriculum; and Saleh Abdullah al-Slaiti of Al Zaytoon International School in Al Sailiya, also following the Indian curriculum.
All four schools will offer co-educational learning environments spanning all grade levels with an emphasis on affordable tuition. Collectively, they are expected to accommodate approximately 5,000 students.
The initiative aligns with Qatar National Vision 2030 by supporting the measured growth of private education, increasing capacity to meet rising demand, expanding available curricula, and strengthening private education’s role as a strategic partner in the national education landscape. Al-Nuaimi noted that the school locations were selected based on population density and the geographic distribution of communities to ensure optimal accessibility.
Qatar’s private education sector currently encompasses 354 schools and kindergartens, employing over 25,000 staff and serving more than 271,000 students from diverse nationalities. It offers curricula from 25 different educational frameworks.
Government incentives play a key role in encouraging investment in private education. These include customs exemptions, relief from electricity and water charges, land and building allocations, provision of textbooks, and educational vouchers for Qatari students. Al-Nuaimi emphasized that such measures aim to improve education quality while easing financial burdens on families.
Saleh Majed al-Khulaifi, assistant undersecretary for Industry and Business Development at MoCI, described the contracts as an important advancement in fostering public-private partnerships and boosting private sector participation in development initiatives. He highlighted that the private sector’s total capital and operational expenditure linked to the project is expected to reach around QR1.48 billion over its 25-year duration.
Eng. Mohammed Masoud al-Marri, head of Ashghal’s Committee for Studying and Monitoring Public-Private Partnership Projects, stressed the importance of these partnerships for enhancing integration between public and private sectors and supporting sustainable development goals.
Dr. Rania Yousri Mohammed, national lead for the Public-Private Partnership and Investment Attraction Project in Private Education, underlined the value of such collaborations in strengthening cooperation between government entities and private schools, promoting the growth of private education, and increasing its contribution to national development.