Students of American University of Afghanistan to Continue Studies in Qatar - University Moves Campus to Doha

The American University of Afghanistan (AUAF) is shifting its main campuses to Doha, Qatar, following an agreement signed last week between the Qatar Foundation (QF), Qatar Fund For Development (QFFD) and the AUAF.

The agreement which foresees education to be provided to AUAF students in the Education City in Doha, was announced by Qatar’s Ambassador to the United States, Sheikh Meshal bin Hamad Al Thani, during the 15th annual dinner by the Friends of the American University of Afghanistan (FAUAF), held in Washington, Erudera.com reports.

Al Thani said that the agreement would enable students to continue education in Qatar, learning without barriers and without fear. He described the cooperation as an immediate and coordinated response to the humanitarian situation, which could affect the education of Afghan students in the future.

“It is with enormous pleasure that I can share the news that the main campuses of AUAF will be relocated to Doha, Qatar. Qatar’s vision is in line with AUAF’s mission: education for better future of the country and the world,” Al Thani wrote on Twitter.

He further said that in Qatar, students will study in a diverse environment, adding that the number of Qataris and non-Qataris is equal, coming from more than 70 countries who complete studies in six US universities in the Education City.

Al Thani pointed out that Qatar has the privilege to help Afghan students and stressed the important role of AUAF in education, adding that the number of students at the university stands at 2,000 full-time and part-time students, out of which, he said 45 percent are women.

Some of the US universities which continue to collaborate with AUAF include:

• Stanford University
• Georgetown University
• The University of California Network
• The Pearson Institute at the University of Chicago
• The University of Maryland

Kenneth Holland, who was president of AUAF between the years 2017 and 2019, told University World News that it was planned to move the university to another country even before 2017 when she became president, if the Taliban would seize Afghanistan.

AUAF was founded in 2006, and since then, it has offered graduate and undergraduate programs based on the United States education system. Before the Taliban took control of Kabul, the university received funding from USAID and the US government.

Last month, a total of 150 students of the American University of Afghanistan managed to leave Afghanistan by booking a flight or crossing the border to neighboring countries.

41 US education organizations called on the US government by the end of September to support more talented Afghan students and scholars, who are facing many challenges due to the situation in their country.