1. Home
  2. The Permanent Mission
  3. The Permanent Representative
pmnyAmbassador

H.E. Ambassador Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani
Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations
Ambassador Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani was appointed Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations in 24th October 2013 on UN Day, becoming the first Qatari woman to hold this position.


In 2013, Ambassador Alya was named a Young Global leader by the World Economic Forum. 

She is widely recognized as a leading voice at the United Nations and has played an important role in positioning the State of Qatar as a leading country for dialogue, mediation, and principled multilateralism. An accomplished diplomat, she is a staunch defender of human rights and international law, climate action and sustainable development, mediation and conflict prevention, women’s empowerment, humanitarian action, and the reform and efficiency of the UN system. She is also known for her unwavering stance against impunity and injustice.
Ambassador Al-Thani is regarded as a bridge-builder across regions and political groups, playing a constructive role in forging consensus in complex negotiations. Through her principled engagement, the leadership of the State of Qatar in humanitarian diplomacy and development has come to the forefront within the United Nations system.

Among her accomplishments, in 2022, she was appointed by the president of the 77th United Nations General Assembly to co facilitate the political declaration to be adopted by the SDG Summit in September 2023 which was adopted by consensus after intensive negotiations. In 2021, Al-Thani appointed by the president of the 76th UNGA to co-chair for a 2nd term the intergovernmental negotiations on the UN Security Council Reform. In 2020, she was appointed by the President of the 75th UNGA to co chair the intergovernmental negotiations on the UN Security Council Reform. In 2019 she was appointed by the president of 74th UNGA to co facilitate the political declaration for the UN 75th anniversary which was adopted by consensus in Sept 2020 in the amidst of the COVID-19 Pandemic. In June 2019, she was appointed by the president of the 73rd UNGA to co facilitate the consultations leading up to a one-day high-level UN meeting commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Conference on Women. In  2018, she was appointed by the president of the 72nd UNGA to Co-facilitate the intergovernmental consultations on the ECOSOC review process.  In 2017, she was appointed by the president of the 71th UNGA to co-facilitate the preparations for the on Global Plan of Action against Trafficking in Persons. 

She has served as Chair of the 61st session of the Commission for Social Development in February 2023, she Chaired the 76th session of the Sixth Committee in September 2021, and the 55th session of the Commission on Population and Development in April 2017. In June 2018, she was elected as vice president of the UNGA during the 73rd session of the UN General assembly. 

Ambassador Al-Thani also co-chairs several influential United Nations Groups of Friends, including the Group of Friends for Gender Parity; the Group of Friends for the Responsibility to Protect; the Group of Friends to Assist on the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism (IIIM) to help investigate crimes committed in Syria; the Group of Friends for Education and Lifelong Learning; the Group of Friends for Solidarity for Global Health Security; and the Group of Friends on Sport for Development and Peace. Through these platforms, she has elevated critical global issues—from ensuring access to education in conflict zones to promoting sport as a catalyst for peace, inclusion, and youth empowerment.

Ambassador Al-Thani previously served as the State of Qatar’s first female Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva and to the World Trade Organization (WTO), and as Consul General of the State of Qatar to the Swiss Confederation from 2011 to 2013. During her term, she held the prestigious post of Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Social Forum of the UN Human Rights Council (2012), becoming only the second woman to hold this appointment. She also represented the State of Qatar on the Executive Councils of the World Health Organization and the International Labour Organization.

Ambassador

Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani

@AmbAlyaAlThani

Education

  • Ambassador Alya holds a Master's Degree in International Studies and Diplomacy (ISD) from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) part of the University of London.
  • She graduated from Qatar University with a Bachelor degree in Economics: from the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics. 

Experience

  • Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations from October 17, 2013 to Present.
  • Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office in Geneva (UNOG) from December 2011 to September 2013, representing the State of Qatar during Qatar’s membership in the UN Human Rights Council, the Executive Council of the World Health Organization  (WHO), and the Executive Council of the International Labor Organization (ILO)
  • Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the World Trade Organization (WTO): 2011-2013
  • General Consul of the State of Qatar to the Swiss Federation: 2011-2013.
  • Worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, and served as a Counselor at the Permanent Mission of the State of Qatar to the UN in New York from June 2007 to July 2011, assuming various responsibilities prior to her appointment as Deputy Permanent Representative in 2010.  
  • Started her career as a Social Policy Researcher, then Director of the Department of the Rights of the Child, Policy Division at the Secretariat of Qatar’s Supreme Council for Family Affairs from 1999 to 2007.

Professional Contributions

  • Ambassador Alya has been selected as a Young Global leader (YGL) in March 2013 by World Economic Forum Committee to improving the State of the World.
  • She Member of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child from 2007 to 2009.
  • She served as a Vice Chairman of the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), United Nations Headquarters from 2008 to 2011.
  • She was appointed as President of the Social Forum of the Human Rights Council in Geneva in 2013.
  • She Authored and facilitated numerous General Assembly Resolutions on behalf of the State of Qatar, including General Assembly Resolution on the International Year of the Family, General Assembly Resolution  (A/RES/62/13) that decided to designate April 2nd as World Autism Awareness Day , General Assembly Resolution (A/RES/62/7) in which the Assembly decided to observe the International Day of Democracy on 15 September each year as endorsed by the Sixth International Conference on New and Restored Democracies, General Assembly Resolution (A/RES/64/290) on the Right to Education in Emergency Situations, and General Assembly Resolution A/RES/65/307 on Improving the Effectiveness and Coordination of Military and Civil Defense Assets for Natural Disaster Response.