Our discussion with Dr. Ayesha Al-Qahtani about “The role of the father in instilling language, values, and religion in children.”
This year’s International Day of Families marks the twentieth anniversary of the International Year of the Family, which was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1994.
The annual observance of the International Day of Families reflects the importance the international community attaches to the wellbeing of families. It is an opportunity to demonstrate support to families and to promote a better understanding of their functions, strengths and needs.
A special observance of the International Day of Families was organized by the Department of Public Information/NGO relation section in partnership with the Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) on the 15th of May in the United Nations headquarters. The event was open to the public and targeted civil society, Permanent Missions, academics and practitioners as well as private sector representatives.
The program included a panel discussion on ‘Families Matter for the Achievement of Development Goals’ which highlighted the contribution of families in overall development, the importance of family policies and the role of civil society; videos which illustrated recent contributions of civil society to the well-being of families worldwide; and the launch of Family Futures, a fully illustrated landmark publication by Tudor Rose commemorating the IYF +20.
Participants call on Governments to promote family policy development, to work with NGOs and other stakeholders and to take more concerted actions to include families in the post 2015 development agenda.
The Doha international Family Institute was represented at this event by Ms Noor Al Malki, the Executive Director, who reflected on the contribution of DIFI in the commemoration of the 20th anniverssary. Ms Al Malki placed a special emphasis on the Doha Call to Action as a significant and powerful statement from NGOs to governments to acknowledge that families are at the center of development, the need to empower them by implementing concrete actions including the inclusion of a family perspective in policy making and the integration of families in the post 2015 development agenda.
The Doha International Family Institute (DIFI) has launched the OSRA research grant in its sixth cycle which is a research grant on Arab families and family policy related issues.
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