DOHA: A novel weight management programme to fight obesity among Qatari schoolchildren is one of the three major research projects that have been awarded special funding by the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF).
The three “exceptional” research projects will get a total of $10.4m.
The second project will expand the Qatar Exoplanet Survey and could lead to discovery of more planets by Qatari researchers and the third will improve solar power conversion systems.
The projects were selected under the second wave of the National Priorities Research Program — Exceptional Proposal (NPRP-EP), an extension of QNRF’s flagship National Priorities Research Program (NPRP).
It offers a maximum budget of $5m for up to five years to proposals of exceptional scientific merit requiring resources in excess of the normal level of funding available under the NPRP.
“The NPRP-EP was created to enable scientists with exceptional ideas, approaches, procedures and models to undertake grand projects aimed at solving key issues for Qatar and the world,” said Dr Abdul Sattar Al Taie, Executive Director of QNRF.
“This is exemplified by the second set of grants in this program, with three new proposals of great significance for Qatar in the fields of health, alternative energy and astronomy.
“The program is open for submissions throughout the year and we look forward to receiving similarly exceptional proposals for the next round of funding,” Dr Al Taie added.
Through the first project, scientists will implement and evaluate a novel weight management programme for Qatari schoolchildren aged 8 to 12 years.
According to latest figures from the National Health Strategy 2011-2016, about 75 percent of Qataris are overweight and 40 percent are obese, increasing the likelihood of a person developing diseases and health problems such as diabetes.
This project aims to help address the issue at its source by increasing awareness at an early stage in the Qatari population about how to manage weight and avert risks associated with being overweight.
Professor and Associate Dean for Research in the College of Arts & Sciences at Qatar University, Dr Mohamed Ahmedna, in collaboration with world-leading surgeon Lord Ara Darzi of Imperial College, London, will lead the project to administer a comprehensive weight management programme that has been adapted for Qatar from a cognitive behavioural approach and methodology developed and validated in the UK.
QNRF has only awarded the first phase of the project, a pilot study that will last one year and has been granted $980,000.
Based on the outcome of the pilot study, QNRF will grant funding for the second phase of the project. The second grant, awarded to Qatar Environment and Energy Institute, will expand the Qatar Exoplanet Survey, led by Qatari astronomer Dr Khalid Alsubai.
In collaboration with scientists from the UK and the US, the survey has already led to the discovery of giant Jupiter-like planets ‘Qatar-1b’, ‘Qatar-2b’ and ‘Qatar-2c’.
With $4.83m NPRP-EP grant, Alsubai and his team are planning to expand Qatar Exoplanet Survey capabilities by establishing more observing stations in new locations around the world, paving the way for future discoveries.
The third research proposal will attempt to solve problems in integrating up to one megawatt of power from photovoltaic power conversion systems into the national utility grid, using a silicon carbide-based inverter.
Dr Haitham Abu-Rub, Professor in Electrical Engineering at Texas A&M University at Qatar and a promising researcher in the field of power electronic converters, will lead the project, which has been granted $4.6m.
The project is significant as research in power electronic converters is expected to play a major role in the conversion of alternative energy sources and the interface of this energy with power grids, QNRF said yesterday.
Noor Al Merekhi, Program Manager of QNRF’s NPRP said, “Thirteen proposals were initially presented to a panel of experts for this round of the NPRP-EP.
“Of those, eight were accepted for the second stage of evaluation, with the scientists’ full proposals being sent to seven peer reviewers.
“The QNRF Steering Committee then assessed the reviews when making the final funding decision, awarding three projects $10.4m over a period of five years.”
The Peninsula
