In a Middle East often defined by spectacle, Qatar has chosen a different path - one built less on flash and more on function.

I recently spent time in Doha, and what stood out was not the skyline, impressive as it is, but the coherence of the national project underway. Qatar is not trying to outbuild or outshout its neighbours. Instead, it is investing patiently in education, mediation, journalism and platforms for global dialogue — areas where influence is earned slowly but lasts longer.

This approach has paid dividends.

Central to this vision is the Qatar Foundation — an institution that has quietly transformed Doha into an intellectual crossroads. Through Education City, Qatar hosts branch campuses of leading global universities, funds research and links education to public policy and innovation. This is not education as branding, but education as........

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