Moza bint Nasser

Sheikha Moza bint Nasser (Arabic: موزة بنت ناصر المسند‎, born in Al Khor, Qatar on 15 January 1959)[1] is the consort of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, former Emir of the State of Qatar.[2]

Sheikha Moza bint Nasser Al Misned
Sheikha Mozah speaking at the Third Global Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilizations in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2010)
Consort to the Emir of Qatar
Reign27 June 1995 – 25 June 2013
Born (1959-01-15) 15 January 1959
Al Khor, Qatar
Spouse
IssueSheikh Jassim bin Hamad
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar
Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad
Sheikha Hind bint Hamad
Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad
Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad
Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad
FatherNasser bin Abdullah Al Missned
ReligionSunni Islam
OccupationChair, Qatar Foundation
UNESCO Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education, 2003
Chair of the Board, Arab Democracy Foundation
UN Advocate for Sustainable Development Goals

Early life and education

Moza is the daughter of Nasser bin Abdullah Al-Misned,[3] a well-known opposition activist and the former head of the Al Muhannada confederation of Bani Hajer. After being released from prison due to his political activities and as an act of defiance against the policies of the deposed former Emir Ahmad bin Ali Al Thani, Nasser bin Abdullah led the entire Al Muhannada clan into self-imposed exile to Kuwait in 1964.[4] Nasser returned to Qatar with his immediate family in 1977,[4] the year in which his daughter Moza married Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, when he was heir apparent of Qatar.[5] She received a BA in Sociology from Qatar University in 1986, and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2003.[6]

Areas of work
Sheikha Moza with her husband at the White House in Washington, D.C.. From left to right: Sheikha Moza, Michelle Obama, the US First Lady, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, and Barack Obama, the US President.

Moza co-founded and chairs the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), which was set up in 1995.[7]

Moza also acted as chairperson of Silatech since 2008, chairperson of the Arab Democracy Foundation, and president of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs since 1998.[8] She has been vice-president of the Supreme Education Council since 2002 and was UNESCO's Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education in 2003.[9] Currently, she serves as a member of the Board of Overseers for Weill Cornell Medical College. Besides this, she is the chairperson of Sidra Medical and Research Center, a high-tech women's and children's hospital in Doha. She also endowed this medical center with $7.9 billion.[10][11]

Unlike many other monarchical wives in the Middle East, Moza has been a high-profile figure in her nation's politics and society, actively involved in Qatar's government. She was a driving force behind Education City and Al Jazeera Children's Channel. She is the owner of Le Tanneur, a French leather-goods manufacturer.[12] Additionally, she has been named as one of Forbes' 100 Most Powerful Women at #74.[13][14]

As the public consort of the emir, she has represented Qatar alongside her husband and on her own at many international events, including state visits and royal weddings.[15] She has become known for her personal style, customising haute couture designs to fit Qatari modesty rules.[16]

She works with the UN to support global education[17] and has been selected as a United Nations Advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals.[18]

Moza initiated the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH), a forum for innovative solutions to international health challenges.[19]

Fashion Trust Arabia (FTA), launched in September 2018 under the patronage of Moza bint Nasser as Honorary Chair and co-Chaired by Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani and Tania Fares (Founder of Fashion Trust), is an initiative offering financial and business support to womenswear designers.[20]

As summarized by the New York Times in 2018, "Sheikha Moza is the object of lurid, often misogynistic insults in the Saudi, Emirati and Egyptian media, where she is portrayed as a power-hungry manipulator of weak men.[21]

Controversy

In July 2020, a Los Angeles Times investigative report showed that following a 2012 meeting in Los Angeles, California between Sheikha Moza and University of Southern California (USC) president C.L. Max Nikias, arranged by USC trustee Thomas J. Barrack Jr., her son Khalifa Bin Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani was admitted to USC as a transfer student from Los Angeles Mission College, a community college. The Los Angeles Times compared this to the 2019 college admissions bribery scandal, "with its allegations of wealthy parents scheming to get underqualified offspring into USC and other universities."[22]

Titles, styles, and honours
Styles of
Sheikha Mozah
Reference styleHer Highness
Spoken styleYour Highness
Alternative styleSheikha

Titles and styles

Moza may be styled as "Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser".[23][24]

Foreign honours

Foreign awards

Children

The royal couple has five sons and two daughters:

References
  1. Andrew Anthony (14 December 2014). "Sheikha Mozah: the (un)acceptable face of Qatar's global expansion". The Guardian.
  2. "Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned, Her Highness Sheikha". Themuslim500.com. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  3. "الشيخة موزا بنت ناصر المسند". Aljazeera.net. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  4. "ناصر بن عبد الله المسند – المعرفة". Marefa.org. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  5. Danna Harman (5 March 2007). "Backstory: The royal couple that put Qatar on the map". Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  6. "Biography of Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Abdullah al Missned". Portal.unesco.org. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  7. "Moza bint Nasser Ph.D.: Executive Profile & Biography – Bloomberg". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  8. "Her Highness Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al Missned". UNAOC. 29 March 2011. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  9. "Her Highness Sheikha Mozah, UNESCO Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education, hosts Regional Conference on Literacy Challenges in the Arab Region in Doha, Qatar". UNESCO. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  10. "Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned". Forbes. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  11. "About – Sidra Medicine". www.sidra.org. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  12. "Les vies secrètes de Dominique de Villepin". Lexpress.fr. 28 May 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  13. "Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned". Forbes.com. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  14. "Who's Who in Qatar: The People of Qatar You Should Know About – Marhaba l Qatar's Premier Information Guide". Marhaba.qa. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  15. "Sheikha Mozah in Spain". Order of Splendor blog. 27 April 2011. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  16. "Sheikha Mozah The Qatar first lady that makes Carlà tremble". Vogue. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  17. المتحدة, مركز الأنباء التابع للأمم (17 November 2011). "مبادرة من الشيخة موزة بنت ناصر لدعم برامج اليونسكو الأساسية". Un.org. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  18. "وزارة التعليم و التعليم العالى- تفاصيل الخبر". Edu.gov.qa. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  19. "Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser – Sidra Medicine". www.sidra.org. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  20. "Fashion Trust Arabia". Archived from the original on 15 July 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
  21. Walsh, Declan (2018). "Tiny, Wealthy Qatar Goes Its Own Way, and Pays for It". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
  22. "The true story of the heartthrob prince of Qatar and his time at USC". Los Angeles Times. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  23. "Biography". Mozabintnasser.qa. Office of Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, State of Qatar. Archived from the original on 23 August 2015. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  24. "United Nations Goodwill and Honorary Ambassadors—Her Highness Sheikha Moza Bint Nasse". Unesco.org. UNESCO. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  25. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 24 April 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2017.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  26. web, Segretariato generale della Presidenza della Repubblica-Servizio sistemi informatici- reparto. "Le onorificenze della Repubblica Italiana". Quirinale.it. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  27. "Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat". Istiadat.gov.my. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  28. "wearing the ribbon bar of the order at the Dutch state visit to Qatar". C7.alamy.com. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
  29. "MINISTERIO DE ASUNTOS EXTERIORES Y DE COOPERACIÓN : 7191 Real Decreto 588/2011, de 20 de abril, por el que se concede la Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel la Católica a Su Alteza la Jequesa Mozah Bint Nasser, del Estado de Qatar" (PDF). Boe.es. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  30. "Photographic image" (JPG). 1.pictures.zimbio.com. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  31. "Qatari State Visit To the UK Photos and Images". Getty Images. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  32. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 8 August 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  33. "Chatham House Prize 2007 – HH Sheikha Mozah". Chathamhouse.org. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  34. "Home – The Peninsula Qatar". Thepeninsulaqatar.com. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  35. "Medalists – Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy". Carnegiemedals.org. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  36. University, Carnegie Mellon. "Past Recipients-Honorary Degrees – Carnegie Mellon University". Cmu.edu. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  37. "Sheikha Moza accepts Bush Award for public service excellence". M.gulf-times.com. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  38. "Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser of Qatar will be presented the George Bush Award for Excellence in Public Service – University of New England in Maine, Tangier and Online". Une.edu. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  39. "Her Highness Sheikha Mozah reminds VCU graduates of limits of technology". Qatar.vcu.edu. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.