SFS-Q Enters New Partnership

Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service in Qatar has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Diplomatic Institute at Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, continuing a recent trend toward stronger ties with local institutions.

While the partnership is primarily intended to train and educate the ministry’s staff, Waleed Khan, marketing and media manager at SFS-Q, said the relationship provides perks for both SFS-Q and the Diplomatic Institute, which is responsible for training the ministry’s officials.

 “SFS-Q’s expertise in international relations benefits the institute, and the institute’s network of career diplomats can mentor and support the growth and development of future diplomats from SFS-Q,” he wrote in an email.

As part of the agreement, SFS-Q will cooperate with the Diplomatic Institute to help develop its academic courses, bolster its research and facilitate training of the ministry’s executive leadership. The two institutions will organize joint conferences and workshops, and students will be encouraged to do volunteer work through the Diplomatic Institute.

In addition, Khan said the partnership could create opportunities for student internships at the Diplomatic Institute in the future.

“Development of internships is definitely something that will be explored further,” he wrote. “We hope that we are able to create opportunities for students to enrich their in-class knowledge with expert speakers and presenters from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with potential apprenticeships.”

Khan said that a working group composed of representatives from SFS-Q and the Diplomatic Institute will convene within a few weeks to determine how best to maximize the partnership’s benefits for both parties.

“The signing of the [agreement] is just the inauguration of the relationship, and in the long term, both parties will gain a lot,” he said.

In his remarks at the signing of the agreement Sept. 4, Gerd Nonneman, dean of SFS-Q, said that the memorandum of understanding continues a trend of bolstering relations with other institutions in Qatar.

“Our mission has always been to contribute to developing Qatar’s national capacity,” he said. “Now, with Qatar playing a critical diplomatic role on the world stage, this is the right time for an agreement of this type in order to support the growing needs of the country and the region.”