Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani on Monday announced that Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is set to launch country’s first venture capital (VC) Fund of Funds, a strategic investment programme to foster innovation in Qatar.

Speaking at the launch of Web Summit Qatar, the prime minister said, “QIA will invest over $1 billion in international and regional capital funds as part of a strategy to develop the venture capital and startup sector in Qatar and neighbouring states.”

In a statement released on the occasion, QIA said, “The programme will have two key objectives. It will generate market-level commercial returns in line with QIA’s mandate to secure sustainable, long-term returns for the people of Qatar.

“At the same time, it will support the sustainable development of a vibrant VC and start-up ecosystem in line with Qatar’s National Development Strategy (NDS3), which seeks to increase the number of startups and the availability of VC funding in the local market.”

The programme aims to attract leading international VC funds and entrepreneurs both to Qatar and the wider GCC region, bringing deep VC and start-up expertise, and contributing to the growth of a local and regional base of venture capitalists and founders.

Regarding the programme, QIA CEO Mansoor Ebrahim Al Mahmoud said, “There is currently no dedicated pool of capital in Qatar for companies that are past seed funding and are ready for Series A to Series C funding rounds. Building a well-connected startup ecosystem network in Qatar is fundamental to diversifying the country’s economic base in the long term. QIA is launching this programme to help ensure that innovative businesses can readily access capital and support from VC funds, enabling them to scale operations and expand market presence in Qatar, across the GCC, and ultimately onto the international stage.”

The program will focus on the tech sector, including fintech and edtech, as well as the healthcare sector.

It will primarily invest indirectly via other VC funds, but will be able to make targeted co-investments with the participating funds. The Fund of Funds program will only invest in VC funds and notin private equity, debt, or any other funds.