Focus on research: A multitude of institutes support innovation in select fields

The Qatar National Research Strategy (QNRS) 2012 details the nation’s vision of becoming a global centre for research and development (R&D), excellence and innovation. This forms part of overall plans to develop human capital and institutions, build and maintain a diversified and competitive economy, improve the health and social well-being of Qataris, support the security and culture of Qatar, and preserve and improve the environment – the pillars of Qatar National Vision 2030. In a November 2013 address to the Qatar Foundation (QF) Annual Research Conference, the chairperson of QF, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, announced that energy, water and cyber security are to take precedence as Qatar’s research priorities. The November announcement will move several initiatives up the roster, including raising the production of solar energy, promoting research into desalination and strengthening information security. Sheikha Moza also noted that research in health – particularly in diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases and neurological disorders – would continue, as would Qatar’s support of Arab expatriate scientists and research centres around the world. This may be a tall order, but the QNRS is certainly well funded – with 2.8% of government revenues allocated to R&D for the 2013/14 fiscal term. QF R&D, a division within QF, is tasked with overseeing this budget and the realisation of the QNRS, as well as the management of a number of institutions that were created to address the current national research priorities.

Applied Research

The Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP) is responsible for implementing applied research and commercialising technologies in information and communications technologies (ICT), energy, health and environmental sciences. Hamad Mohammed Al Kuwari, the managing director of QSTP, told OBG, “Around 70% of the institutions at QSTP are related to energy and the environment, 20% are in ICT and the remaining 10% are involved in health sciences.” The park’s facilities were designed specifically to meet the needs of technology-oriented firms. QSTP is privileged to be co-located with higher education institutions (at Education City), giving park members easy access to their resources. The government is seeking to attract foreign investors to launch R&D facilities in the park and to provide opportunities for firms to commercialise the technology they develop by funding ventures, creating intellectual property (IP), enhancing technology management skills and developing innovative products in line with the scientific and research components of Qatar National Vision 2030.

Current park members include small and medium-sized firms, research institutions and multinationals such as Maersk Oil, Microsoft, ExxonMobil, GE, Siemens, Shell, Total and ConocoPhillips. “At present, there are 42 entities and occupancy is 95%. The second phase of physical expansion is under way, with Tech IV ( workshops) and Tech III (additional offices and labs) ready in three years,” Al Kuwari told OBG.

In order to become a QSTP member, the bulk of a tenant’s activities must contribute to the advancement of technology. Collaboration with Qatar’s universities and research institutes in areas such as applied research, technology-related training, and testing of products and services is also favoured. QSTP members will soon be able to take advantage of business-support programmes, including an investment fund for start-ups, mentoring and entrepreneurship training. It is also a tax- and duty-free zone, with foreign investors allowed to establish wholly owned technology development companies and branches; unrestricted repatriation of capital and profits; and permission to hire expatriate employees. Member companies have the option to lease space or commission their own buildings for design and build by the park.

Capital Funds

Funding the nation’s research priorities is the mandate of the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), which supports original, competitively selected research in all scientific fields. Founded to provide opportunities for researchers at all levels of expertise – from students to professionals working in the private, public and academic sectors – QNRF invests in the four priorities of the QNRS: energy and environment, computer science and ICT, health and social sciences, and the arts and humanities. QNRF-funded research programmes and projects are expected to stimulate the creation and adoption of IP and technological innovation, enhance the health and education of Qataris, and help conserve the country’s natural assets.

Key Priorities

Tackling two of the three newly highlighted national research priorities – energy and water security – is the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI), part of QF R&D. Launched in 2011, QEERI aims to establish itself as a leading research institute focused on energy, water and natural resources, thereby supporting Qatar’s transformation to a knowledge-based economy and helping the country address the resource-related challenges it may face in the future. Researchers will focus on fundamental and applied research in the areas of solar energy, energy storage, grid integration, water desalination, water treatment and reuse, and water resource management. Working with its strategic international partners and local stakeholders, QEERI will help Qatar achieve its goal of deploying 1 GW of solar energy and increasing water security through more efficient desalination and use of water resources, as well as efforts to increase water reserves.

Taking on the third national research priority, cyber security, is the Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI). Established in 2010 by QF R&D, the institute is helping build Qatar’s innovation and technology capacity by focusing on large-scale computing challenges that address national growth and development priorities.

Qatar is among the most connected countries in the world due to its extensive networks related to energy, banking and media, among other sectors. Given this global connectivity, the QCRI is tasked with addressing cyber security threats as they related to Qatar’s specific context. As of 2013, scientists at QCRI have filed more than 65 patent families in the US, in the UK and with the World IP Organisation’s Patent Cooperation Treaty system, resulting in five patents being granted. Other IP developments include the creation of software licenses, as well as work on open license software, and the launch of Data Tamer, a US-based start-up. QCRI has also formed relationships with top international institutions including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boeing, European Media Laboratory and Wikimedia, as well as local institutions such as Al Jazeera.

Established as part of QF R&D, the Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI) tackles chronic and severe diseases, including diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular diseases, with a focus on translational biomedical research and biotechnology. Hilal Lashuel, executive director of QBRI, told OBG, “In regard to biomedical research in the state, through QBRI, we will be focusing on areas related to genetics research in particular genomic medicine, stem-cells and gene therapy, in addition to biomedical engineering research. The concept was established under the QNRS to complement research in existing facilities such as hospitals and universities, not to compete with them.”

Within the QBRI, the Qatar Biobank for Medical Research focuses on collecting and storing biological samples and information about the health and lifestyles of the population of Qatar. According to Dr Asma Al Thani, the vice-chairperson of the biobank, “During the next few years, scientists will use these samples and information to gain insight into the causes of common chronic diseases that affect the Qatari population. This knowledge will contribute to the development of novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for the treatment of these diseases.”

Teaching & Research

Sidra Medical and Research Centre (SMRC), which is charged with developing health-related science and research programmes aligned with QNRS, will be a teaching and research hospital and the main teaching venue for Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar after its opening in 2015. Funded by QF R&D with the world’s largest endowment for a medical and research centre, at $7.9bn, SMRC will focus on running translational research programmes, which are expected to further knowledge about disease origin and process; help to create diagnostic, preventive and therapeutic tools; as well as to improve health outcomes.

When completed, SMRC will have labs for genomics, bioinformatics, flow cytometry, deep phenotyping, imaging and drug analysis. SMRC is intent on becoming a regional research hub. Alongside the US National Institutes of Health, it is working to build the region’s first reprogrammable gene facility, and with BGI-Health Asia Pacific SMRC is setting up the MENA region’s first genetic sequencing and population studies institute.