Manama: The status of Arab families in an age of transition will be the focus of a conference to be held in Qatar next month.

The Doha International Family Institute (DIFI) said the two-day conference would use research, theory and practices to advance knowledge about the Arab family.

“In addition, DIFI is keen on highlighting the role of the family as a defining force in shaping society, focusing on regional trends, areas of strength and resilience and challenges affecting families in Arab countries,” it said.

The inaugural Annual Conference on Family Research and Policy on May 3-4 will be held under the theme “The Arab Family in an Age of Transition: Challenges and Resilience.”

“The DIFI conference seeks to promote research on the family in the Arab world and generate evidence to help develop future policies to promote the wellbeing of families,” Noor Al Jehani, DIFI Executive Director, said.

The conference will also examine the role of policy in supporting the family and consider global issues, which impact the Arab family, either positively or negatively, from a multidisciplinary perspective.

It will also engage with scholars and practitioners on discussions that analyse mutually beneficial practices within the context of family policy.

More than 400 young and senior researchers from more than 35 countries have submitted abstracts, mainly from Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Yemen, Palestine, Syria and Jordan.

The abstracts encompass the main themes from the conference, including political, economic, and cultural challenges facing the Arab family in different regions of the Arab world.

They also include marriage and divorce in the Arab world, responses to challenges in terms of marriage practices, the causes and consequences of separation and divorce, and the role of state policies on family formation and stability, together with the effect of the absence of such policies.

DIFI said that several researchers in the Arab region and beyond believed that an open dialogue and investigation into the topic of marriage and divorce was long overdue.

“The discussion of these challenges and exploration of possible interventions will form an integral part of the conference,” DIFI said.