Sheikha Moza, Michelle Obama urge collective effort to protect education

Speaking at the launch of an international education conference in Qatar today, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser delivered an impassioned speech that described the current education situation in the region as “not only paralyzed but going backwards at the speed of light.”

The Qatar Foundation chairperson gave the opening address at the annual World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) to more than 2,000 delegates from over 150 countries, who gathered at the Qatar National Convention Center in Education City this morning.

Michelle Obama, the First Lady of the United States, also spoke at the opening session, arguing that improving educational opportunities for girls required changes in how women are treated in some countries.

Sheikha Moza first spoke in Arabic before switching to English, “to make sure we are all tuned into the same wavelength,” she told the delegates, who rewarded her with applause.

She raised the issues of lack of education, particularly for young children, in lower-income countries, as well as war-torn nations such as Syria and Iraq.

Quoting a recent UNESCO report, she said that an estimated 3 million primary school-age children are out of school in these two countries alone.

Original article by Lesley Walker

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Sheikha Moza, Michelle Obama urge collective effort to protect education