Qatar Cancer Society “QCS “organized a ceremony honoring the winners of the “Time to Quiet ” competition, launched this May for school students as part of the celebration of World No Tobacco Day, which falls on the thirty-first of May every year. In the presence of His Excellency Shaikh Dr. Khalid bin Jabor Al Thani – Chairman of Qatar Cancer Society, Mr. Ibrahim Abdullah Al Dehaimi – General Manager  of the Regulatory Authority for Charitable Activities, and Mrs. Mona Ashkanani – Director General of Qatar Cancer Society

His Excellency Shaikh Dr. Khalid bin Jabor Al Thani – Chairman of Qatar Cancer Society, Mr. Ibrahim Abdullah Al Dehaimi – General Manager of the Regulatory Authority for Charitable Activities, and Mr. Muhammad Abdullah Al-Maraghi – Director of the Health and Safety Department / Ministry of Education and Higher Education-  honored the three winning schools The first is Maha Ali Talib – Al-Jazeera Academy, Heba Hamza – Al-Bayan Secondary School for Girls, the second place is Al-Dana Salem Khamis – Umm Ayman Secondary School for Girls, Khaled Hussam – Elite International School, and the third place went to  Aizah Khan – Bright Future International School, The Next Generation (TNG) School /Wakra Primary & Secondary Campus.

The celebration included a panel discussion about raising awareness of the harms of tobacco and the importance of quitting and promoting a healthy lifestyle, with the participation of several specialists and partners, namely Mr. Muhammad Abdullah Al-Maraghi – Director of the Health and Safety Department / Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Dr. Abdul Hameed Al-Khonji – Head of Wellness for Community Interventions & Senior Consultant Community Medicine /Preventative Health – Wellness Programs, – Dr. Jamal Bashi – Smoking control and treatment specialist / Tobacco Control Center Hamad Medical Corporation, and Mrs. Marwa Al-Saleh / Radio Host and Social media influencer.

His Excellency Shaikh Dr. Khaled bin Jabr Al Thani – expressed his happiness with the participation of this large number of state schools, whether governmental, private or international, in their preparatory and secondary stages, in this competition, which the charity is keen to launch every year, especially since the honoring of the winners in this version witnessed the presence of dear brother  Ibrahim Abdullah Al Dehaimi – General Manager of the Regulatory Authority for Charitable Activities, especially since the responsibility for tobacco control is a joint responsibility that rests with all of us as officials and parents at the same time.

His Excellency thanked all partners and supporters, including the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Hamad Medical Corporation, Primary Health Care Corporation, Suhail Holding Company, and Vodafone Company. Thanks are extended to the competition jury represented by Mr. Abdullah Ahmed Mohammed – Head of the Communication and Awareness Department at Fire Station, And Dr. Muhammad Abdeen – Community Medicine Specialist.

Mrs. Mona Ashkanani – Director General of QCS – said ‘Time to Quiet’ competition  aims to raise awareness of the harms of tobacco and to emphasize the importance of quitting it and avoiding passive smoking as well as encouraging the adoption of a healthy lifestyle, noting that more than 90 artworks received from preparatory and secondary school students  and as a result of the significant interaction that we found, two winners were chosen for each of the three  places,