Our Board of Trustees and Museum Presidents

Board of Trustees

His Excellency Mr. Issa bin Mohammed Al Mohannadi
Member of the Board of Trustees

His Excellency Issa bin Mohammed Al Mohannadi is the President of the Racing and Equestrian Club, and before that, he held the position of President of the Qatar Tourism Authority and CEO of Msheireb Properties. He is a graduate of Texas A&M University in Kingsville, Texas, USA. He also obtained several certificates in leadership and project management from Georgetown University in Washington and Harvard. In May 2012, he took the position of CEO of Msheireb Properties, a subsidiary of Qatar Foundation, which he co-founded to become one of the most advanced real estate companies in the world, promoting sustainability in architecture and heritage preservation in Qatar. His Excellency has received many praises and appreciation for his role in the rapidly growing business community in Qatar, where he was awarded the title of “Best CEO of the Year 2010” of the Middle East Awards for Executives granted by the “Middle East Award Institute for Excellence". With his experience in project management and his background in the global business sector, Mr. Issa Al Mohannadi has contributed significantly to creating a strategic plan for the tourism sector in Qatar, and to a renaissance in the industry.

Her Excellency Mrs. Lolwah bint Rashid Al Khater
Member of the Board of Trustees

Her Excellency Mrs. Lolwah bint Rashid Al Khater was appointed as the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar as per H.E. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs’ Decision number 43 for the Year of 2017. She was later appointed as Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs as per His Highness the Emir’s Decision no. 56 of 2019, in addition to her duties as Official Spokesperson for the Ministry.

Before her appointment as the Spokesperson, H.E. Lolwah Al Khater joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Minister Plenipotentiary. She also served as the Director of Planning and Quality at Qatar Tourism Authority and as a Research Project Manager at Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development. H.E was appointed as Media City board member as per H.E. the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Decision no. 20 of 2019, and she is the Executive Director of Doha Forum. Besides her official duties, Her Excellency worked as an Independent Policy Analyst participating in conferences and multiple publications, and she is the co-editor of Policy-Making in a Transformative State: The Case of Qatar, a book published by Palgrave Macmillan. H.E. Lolwah Al Khater also wrote a book entitled Educational Outputs and Labor Market Needs: A Study on Labor Market Issues in the GCC and Methods of Addressing Them", which was published through the General Secretariat of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Moreover, Her Excellency worked as a lecturer at Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and she is a Research Associate at The Oxford Gulf and Arabian Peninsula Forum. H.E. Mrs. Lolwah Al Khater is also a board member at the Institute for Palestine Studies. Her Excellency holds a Master of Science in Computing and a Master of Arts in Public Policy. Her research interests are Islam and modernity, and public policies

His Excellency Hassan bin Abdullah Al Thawadi
Member of the Board of Trustees

His Excellency Hassan bin Abdullah Al Thawadi is the Secretary-General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, the entity responsible for coordinating between the Qatari government and private entities involved in implementing infrastructure and development projects in preparation for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. As a lawyer, Al Thawadi previously held the position of General Counsel at the Qatar Investment Authority and Qatar Holding, which were both established in Qatar in 2005 with the aim of diversifying the country’s economy through several strategic investments for the State of Qatar in the long term.

His Excellency Dr. Saad bin Ahmed Al Mohannadi
Member of the Board of Trustees

Dr. Saad bin Ahmed Al Mohannadi is President of the Public Works Authority (Ashghal). He was appointed by an Emiri decree in early 2017 and succeeded in leading Ashghal through difficult challenges. Al Mohannadi managed successfully all pending issues, foremost of which was the delay in infrastructure and road projects. Through this department, he employed the potential available in Ashghal, and provided the best cooperation with contractors to complete the projects, reaching an average of one major project per month.

Al Mohannadi gave the private sector an opportunity to participate and contribute in Ashghal's projects through the "Ta’heel" initiative, and to obtain building materials with higher quality and competitive prices, without any significant impact on the number of completed projects. Al Mohannadi’s career is full of contributions, as he held many leadership positions in the country, the most important of which was the position of CEO of the Qatar Railways Company “Rail” in 2011.

Dr. Hassan bin Rashid Al Derham
Member of the Board of Trustees

Qatar University’s 6th President Dr. Hassan Rashid Al Derham is recognized for playing a major role in advancing research activity at both university and national levels. Dr. Al Derham assumed the position of President on 15 June 2015. He was previously Vice-President for Research from 2007 during which he guided QU to its current position as leader of research excellence in the GCC region, which was enhanced by its continuous success in winning the largest percentage of grants in the National Priorities Research Program (NPRP) and Undergraduate Research Experience Program (UREP) under the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF).

He also served in several earlier roles at QU including Associate VP for Research and Head of Civil Engineering at the College of Engineering. He holds a Ph.D. and Post-Graduate Diploma in Construction Project Management from University of Glamorgan (currently University of South Wales), UK which followed obtaining a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from Georgia Tech, USA. His undergraduate is in Architectural Engineering from North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University, USA.

Mr. Aziz Al Othman Fakhro
Member of the Board of Trustees

Mr. Aziz Al Othman Fakhro was appointed to the Board of Directors of Katara Hospitality in March 2021 and is currently the Managing Director of Ooredoo Corporate since November 2020, as well as a Senior Advisor to the Minister of Finance. During the period from 2014 to 2020 he held the position of Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance for General Budget, Treasury and Financial affairs. From 2007 to 2014, he served as Acting Director of the Mergers and Acquisitions Department of Qatar Holding - the investment and strategic arm of the Qatar Investment Authority, where he supervised a number of the most important acquisitions during that period.

Mr. Abdullah Al Najjar
Member of the Board of Trustees

As Executive Director of Global Brand and Communications at Al Jazeera Media Network, Al Najjar currently spearheads the Network’s global brand expansion and multi-platform distribution efforts. Al Najjar started his tenure in Al Jazeera in 2007, being appointed as Director of Commercial Affairs for Al Jazeera. His expertise in brand development, strategic planning, international relations, organizational excellence and leadership has contributed to the development and growth of Al Jazeera into one of the world's top media networks. Under his leadership, Al Jazeera has won a range of leading industry awards for brand, marketing, and communications including the Global SABRE, PRWeek Global, Red Dot, the Pencil and The One Show awards. As an accomplished leader, he has led a range of global initiatives in other posts: Al Najjar served as the Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Museums Authority, which made history with the launch of the Qatar's iconic Museum of Islamic Art, alongside with Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art, the QMA Gallery in Katara, Al Riwaq Gallery, and many others.  

He has also served as the CEO of the Qatar–Sudan Archaeological Project, a partnership that has established cultural cooperation between both countries. Al Najjar is also widely recognized as the driving force behind the success of the 15th Asian Games Doha 2006.  

Al Najjar is known as a strategic leader with the ability to inspire and influence. He is a graduate in Engineering and holds an Executive MBA with merit from Plymouth University in the United Kingdom.

Museum Presidents

Mr. Mansoor bin Ibrahim Al Mahmoud
President of the National Museum of Qatar

Mr. Mansoor is the Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Investment Authority. Prior to that, as the CEO of Qatar Development Bank and the Office Director of Investment Affairs for H.E. the Former Prime Minister, he supervised all investment-related work. He was also CEO of Qatar Museums and Special Advisor to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Qatar Museums, H.E. Sheikha Al Mayassa Bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. Prior to that, he was also the Director of Risk Management Department at Qatar Investment Authority.

Qatar Investment Authority is a sovereign wealth fund of Qatar specialized in domestic and foreign investments. It was established by the government of Qatar in 2005 to manage oil and natural gas surpluses. The Authority owns financial assets amounting to more than 335 billion dollars. These properties are distributed among investments and financial reserves in many countries around the world in different continents. Al Mahmoud was also a Board Member in international investment companies, such as Qatar National Bank, Qatari Diar and Hassad Food Company.

Sheikh / Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Thani
President of the Museum of Islamic Art

Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ahli Bank

Sheikh Hassan bin Mohammad bin Ali Al Thani
President of Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art

Sheikh Hassan bin Mohamed bin Ali Al Thani is a Qatari artist, collector, researcher, and educator in the field of modern art from the Arab world, India and Asia. Sheik Hassan studied "Art of the 20th Century" in a course at Qatar University in the mid-1980s. At that time, there was little information about Arab modern art, and there was not one single institution dedicated to Arab modern art in the whole region of the Middle East and North Africa. He then decided to build his own collection and expand his knowledge of Arab modern art by sponsoring and promoting Arab artists. Now his multi-billion-dollar art collection is one of the most valuable and extensive in the Middle East. He is Vice Chairperson of Qatar Museums, Advisor for Cultural Affairs at Qatar Foundation, and founder of Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art.

His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Thani
President of 3-2-1 Qatar Olympic and Sports Museum

Goodwill Ambassador of Reach Out to Asia (ROTA), and the first Qatari to climb Mount Everest in 2014

His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Abdullah bin Ali bin Saud Al Thani
President of the Orientalist Museum

His Excellency Sheikh Abdullah bin Ali Al Thani, Ph.D., serves as Advisor in the Amiri Diwan in Doha, Qatar.  He is Chair of the Executive Board and Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Qatar University. He is a member of the Board of Directors and Managing Director of Qatar Leadership Centre, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies –Tarsheed.

Dr. Al Thani held many positions at Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, where he served as Vice President for Education for 10 years (2005-15), laying the strategic foundations for higher education and research. From 2010 to 2015, Dr. Al Thani served as the founding President of Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, an emerging research university built upon unique collaborations with local and international partners.

Dr. Mohammed bin Saleh Al Sada
President of Dadu, Children’s Museum of Qatar

Former Minister of Energy and Industry

Dr. Hessa bint Sultan Al Jaber
President of the Qatar Auto Museum

Her Excellency, Dr. Hessa Al Jaber is the first Minister of Information and Communications Technology in Qatar, following the formation of the new cabinet in 2013 by His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar. Her Excellency is the third Qatari woman to hold a ministerial portfolio in Qatar.

Prior to becoming the Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Hessa Al Jaber was Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Information & Communication Technology (ICT Qatar) since its inception in 2005.