ritish Council's New Director Hope Arrives Qatar Next Month

B Doha, July 18 (QNA) - Martin Hope will succeed Simon Winetroube as the Director of British Council in Qatar, the Council has said. The successor arrives Doha next month. British Ambassador HE Michael O'Neill hosted a farewell reception, at his residence, for the outgoing director this Monday. Senior representatives from the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, Qatar Foundation, Katara, General Secretariat for Development and Planning (GSDP) and the Qatar Diabetes Association, the Council said. Ambassador O'Neill and other guests paid tribute to Winetroube who has overseen a major growth in the British Council's activities in Qatar, since he arrived in August 2007 including some major new initiatives. The newly-appointed British Ambassador to Qatar HE Michael O'Neill congratulated Winetroube, saying that the Director has done an exemplary job in the development of the British Council in Qatar and the entire region. "Although I arrived in Qatar only two months ago, I have seen already the fruits of the outstanding efforts that Simon initiated at the Council, fostering change not only in Qatar but across the GCC countries. "The projects that he has overseen for the past five years will continue to help generations to come for example this year's 'Kids Read' course which concluded yesterday, an initiative to promote good reading habits among children, and improved language and critical thinking skills. This excellent and highly commendable programme is absolutely in line with Qatar National Vision 2030. "I would like to thank Simon for working tirelessly to bring such developments in Qatar through the British Council. I wish him and his family the very best as they move to Australia to take up a new challenge in the university world." In his farewell address, Winetroube expressed his gratitude for the co-operation from government and other organisations in Qatar and expressed his hope that the strong cultural relations between the UK and Qatar would continue to grow and prosper in the years to come. "This five-year period has been an exciting time to be in Qatar with so many amazing developments in the educational and cultural spheres," said Winetroube. "I have seen Katara open, Hamad Bin Khakifa University established and University College London (UCL) open its doors here," said Winetroube. "I've seen the successful 2022 World Cup bid, Doha as Capital of Arab culture and many Independent schools established. I feel privileged to have been the British Council Director here at this time and I am envious of my successor, Martin Hope, who is about to start his Qatar experience. "I would like to think that through the British Council, the UK has played its part in these developments in Qatar. I have been inspired by some of the flagship Arts projects we have undertaken during my time here; thrilled by the growth in our teaching centre and exams work, and proud of the contribution which we have made to developments in English language teaching and education in general." During Winetroube's tenure as Director, the British Council in Qatar witnessed a significant growth in its three main business units Arts, English, and Education and Society, the Council said. Major arts developments over the past five years include projects such as 'My Father's House' a high-profile regional exhibition of lens-based work produced by British and Middle East artists, that uses architecture as a central motif to explore the role of heritage in defining cultural identity; Gulf Stage a ground-breaking theatre involving UK specialist company Digital Theatre, Qatar's Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, and the Qatar Foundation; and Akram Khan a collaborative effort with Katara to showcase Akram Khan s latest contemporary dance. In the English for the Future initiative, the British council worked closely with Independent School Teachers to build capacity through train-the-trainer programmes, intensive summer workshops, and a regular series of workshops and events for the Council's English Language Teachers Network which has over 800 members. In education, the Council introduced the Big Science Challenge project with schools, and the Energy and Security Research Symposium with Qatar Foundation. These symposia were multi-disciplinary in approach, addressing issues from a wide range of perspectives with stakeholders from the UK and across the region. The Council also launched society initiatives such as the Springboard for Women Development programme, and worked intensively with young people in the Global Change-makers Projects, with initiatives such as the Silatech Conference and Time Bank, the Council added. (QNA)