(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Sidi Mohamed | The Peninsula
Doha: The Embassy of Sweden in Doha hosted a Midwinter Lucia celebrations yesterday to celebrate the National Day of Sweden in the presence of more than 800 guests.
The event was attended by Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti, Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs H E Yousef bin Mohammed Al Othman Fakhro, Ibrahim Yousif Abdullah Fakhroo, Director of Department of Protocol, and a number of dignitaries.
'Sweden aims to create a sustainable platform for long-standing partnerships with Qatar, focused on the fact that Sweden and Qatar are both small countries with great ambitions, leading to a spirit of knowledge-sharing for mutual benefit, Ewa Polano, Ambassador of Sweden to Qatar said.
She said: 'According to old Swedish folklore belief, during the cold and dark December, we Swedes have a need to recall the sun and light . Therefore, we gather in our offices, at schools, with family and friends to enjoy Lucia songs and eating saffron buns, symbolising the sun, enjoyed with strongly spiced hot drink to stay warm and to bring back hope for brighter and warmer days to return.
About Lucia, she said: 'It is one of the most beloved Swedish folklore traditions. Swedes celebrate Lucia just before the winter solstice, in the cold and dark month of December, inspired by people's yearning for light and an ancient belief in recalling the sun.
'This Swedish magical midwinter setting is what we would like to share with you when celebrating the friendship between Qatar and Sweden tonight. We are all impressed by Qatar's performance in the last decades in all areas, in line with the great ambitions in Qatar National Vision 2030. Qatar is a cultural and intellectual regional hub with all its universities and think tanks. The beautiful capital Doha, with iconic architecture and lovely corniche, she added.
The bilateral relations culminated earlier this year when Qatar Leadership Center's Executive Leaders Program chose Sweden for their annual learning journey. During their trip, they visited the best of Swedish industry, research institutions, and government, to benchmark the Swedish model and review best practices within high-skilled production, financial technology, R & D, academia and sustainable know-how. These 40 Executive Leaders are now working on applying the lessons learned in Sweden to their local context.
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