Qatar’s long and short-term socio-economic development plans are focused on achieving the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). There are 17 SDGs covering social, environmental, ecological, economic and governance-related targets. Qatar’s significant natural gas reserves grant the country a prominent position in global hydrocarbons markets and value chains, giving Qatar a central role to play and responsibility to fulfil in lowering hydrocarbons-related emissions. The country’s vast sovereign wealth also presents it with an opportunity to help drive SDG progress more broadly, both regionally and globally. Qatar’s small population and landmass, alongside its financial strength, afford it agility in policy implementation and the ability to install nationwide sustainable socio-economic systems more swiftly. This grants the country a stage on which it can stand as an operational example of a sustainable economy.
Public and private stakeholders have collaboratively outlined a $75bn development pipeline designed to guide Qatar’s sustainability push into 2030, with the enhanced use of green financing products being targeted and harnessed in project execution. Major projects in recent years have seen sports facilities constructed in line with green building standards and the development of emissions-free metro and tram systems. The country’s internal and external involvement in the renewable energy market will expand markedly in the coming years, while Qatar is harnessing its growing economic and diplomatic influence to drive sustainability through strategic bilateral partnerships.
Sustainable Finance
A rigorous approach to sustainable finance strategy, policy and regulatory formulation is providing the foundation upon which the country can make tangible its vision of a sustainable future. In 2020 Qatar National Bank Group pioneered the country’s presence in the green securities market, issuing $600m in green bonds. Following that, in 2022 Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) issued the Gulf’s first sustainable sukuk (Islamic bond) and bond regulatory framework in 2022, facilitating growth for the segment and bolstering investor confidence. In 2024 Qatar Central Bank (QCB) launched its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Sustainability Strategy for the Financial Sector. Through the strategy, QCB announced its intention to issue regulations for green loans, bonds, sukuk and other sharia-compliant instruments. The strategy also details climate-risk stress testing guidelines for Qatari banks, ESG disclosure requirements, specialised training programmes and other initiatives to support the issuance of sustainable sovereign debt.
Legislation
QFC built upon these regulations in September 2024 with the release of a digital assets governance framework, aiming for the greater use of tokenised sukuk. That year Qatar issued $2.5bn in green bonds to fund sustainable development projects, signalling significant growth from the 2020 figure. Sukuk is not subject to interest or speculative investment, presenting a more stable type of financial instrument. Tokenising sukuk through blockchain technologies broadens accessibility, raising its capacity to boost both public and private liquidity, with digital sukuk’s appeal to Arab and non-Arab investors on the rise. Indeed, the global Islamic finance market is forecast to grow from its 2023 value of $2.5trn to $7.7trn by 2033, representing a compound annual growth rate of 12%. By issuing new regulations and through initiatives such as its Digital Assets Lab – launched in September 2024 – QFC is working to harness the rising popularity of digital assets and Islamic finance to drive ethical economic practice and sustainable development.
In April 2025 the QCB unveiled its Sustainable Finance Framework, incorporating regulation to enhance transparency, and improve revenue management and reporting, while tightening rules related to external audits for financial institutions. Stakeholders and commentators have deemed it a step towards more deeply embedding sustainable financial instruments into socio-economic development and balancing growth targets with environmental and social responsibilities.
In January 2025 QFC partnered with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Qatar and the UNDP Istanbul International Centre for Private Sector in Development to formulate and launch an Arabic-language online learning facility designed to provide professionals, policymakers and stakeholders across the Arab world with sophisticated, actionable knowledge of how Islamic finance can be harnessed to stimulate and support sustainable development. A pre-existing English-language version of the course has been completed by around 5000 recipients. Arabic is spoken by over 300m people worldwide, so adapting the course to inform a global audience of the uses and benefits of the mobilisation of Islamic financial instruments and impact investment strategies could stimulate economic growth for countries and firms across the Arab world.
Education & Innovation
While specialised training offers benefits, traditional education systems are crucial to the success of the sustainable development agenda. This was emphasised by Qatar’s permanent representative to the UN office in Geneva, who opened proceedings at the World Association for Sustainable Development’s 2024 Sustainability International Conference. Qatar is investing in its own education ecosystems, with the country’s schools and universities being harnessed to develop the human capital Qatar requires to compete in the modern global economy. Higher education institutions are helping to drive sustainable economic development, with research, development and innovation output advancing the integration of circular economy practices, renewable energy production and advanced manufacturing systems.
In recent years the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) has spearheaded and participated in a number of projects aimed at boosting the availability and quality of education in underdeveloped countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America. Those projects have helped to tackle issues such as child labour, enabled more people to participate in national workforces and economic development, and helped fortify business ecosystems for recipient countries. In February 2024 QFFD renewed its provision of flexible core funding to the UNDP.
The Accelerator Labs project was established in September 2019 by the UNDP and QFFD in collaboration with the German and Italian governments. The initiative saw the founding partners fund a network of 60 lab teams across 78 developing countries, designed to innovate solutions for pressing development challenges, with the number of labs rising to 91 across 115 countries by late 2022. Qatar provided $30m of funding for the project during 2019-25. In 2021 alone the labs addressed 152 challenges across all 17 SDGs, devising over 2000 solutions to global issues, including 29 new data applications that saw satellite information used to combat deforestation. The partnership renewal sees Qatar committed to providing funding until 2028.
Food Security
Global food security has come into starker focus following a succession of worldwide economic shocks and resulting damage to international supply chains and trade relations. GCC countries contend with desert conditions, equating to water shortage and minimal arable land. As of 2022, 1.8% of Qatar’s land was arable, rising to 2.5% when land suitable for pasture was included. Nevertheless, the country’s food production sector was the fastest growing in the GCC during 2014-19, seeing a 400% spike in volume over the final three years of that period, with the country achieving self-sufficiency for poultry and dairy. Again, sovereign liquidity provides something of an equaliser, enabling GCC countries to invest in innovative solutions, such as cloud seeding, smart irrigation, aquaponics and hydroponics, and vertical farming to address food production constraints and water shortages at home.
In December 2024 Qatar launched its National Food Security Strategy 2030. The development of sustainable agricultural technologies is targeted under the strategy to mitigate exposure to ecological and socio-economic crises and boost local food production, while forging new strategic partnerships with international food manufacturers and food-producing countries is another core focus. In September 2024 several Qatari firms announced they would invest in Algerian agriculture. Of key importance are crops such as cereals, fruits and palm products, as well as livestock production and the implementation of vital infrastructure including wells and irrigation points. Baladna, Qatar’s largest locally owned food and dairy producer, will invest $3.5bn in a range of initiatives that will cater for 50% of Algeria’s powdered milk demand, make a significant contribution to the country’s red meat requirement and create 5000 jobs. Meanwhile, Qatar Investment Authority announced in April 2025 the creation of a $4bn co-investment fund with Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Management Agency, or Danantara Indonesia Sovereign Fund, with Indonesia’s agriculture sector set to receive significant investment, further underscoring Qatar’s commitment to driving sustainable development both domestically and internationally.
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