New York, February 05 (QNA) - The State of Qatar has reaffirmed its support for the world's least developed countries (LDCs) by taking part in the opening of a United Nations Expert Group Meeting on the Operationalization of the Food Stockholding Mechanism.

The meeting, held at UN headquarters in New York, was organized by the Office of the UN High Representative for Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States.

HE Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani attended the meeting. In her opening remarks, Her Excellency said Qatar attached great importance to the challenges facing LDCs, stressing that multilateral cooperation and international solidarity were essential to achieving the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

She highlighted the Doha Program of Action for LDCs for the period 2022–2031, which was adopted at the Fifth UN Conference on Least Developed Countries hosted by Qatar in March 2023. She described the program as a renewed global compact to address structural challenges, placing resilience, food security and productive capacity-building at the center of international support.

HE Sheikha Alya also noted that in September 2025, on the sidelines of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, Qatar — represented by the Qatar Fund for Development — signed an agreement with the Office of the High Representative to support the food stockholding mechanism emerging from the Doha Program of Action.

She said the agreement formed part of Qatar's USD 60 million commitment announced at the Fifth UN Conference on LDCs, aimed at supporting the program's key outcomes, particularly strengthening resilience and developing food storage systems.

According to HE Sheikha Alya, these initiatives reflect Qatar's determination to translate political commitments into concrete action, while underscoring the importance of coordinated efforts within the UN system and evidence-based policy-making to achieve sustainable results for least developed countries.

She concluded by reaffirming Qatar's commitment to supporting the effective implementation of the Doha Program of Action, describing the meeting as an important opportunity to deepen understanding, share best practices and put forward practical recommendations to ensure the food stockholding mechanism delivers tangible benefits for the world's poorest nations. (QNA)