Doha: The Ministry of Social Development and Family (MSDF), in cooperation with an elite group of consultants, educators, and counselors, and the Family Counseling Center (Wefaq), will organize the national project to train and qualify trainers for the First Year of Marriage program, on May 6. In a statement on Sunday, the MSDF said that the program will witness the participation of an elite group of family relations specialists in 30 training hours across 15 training workshops, each workshop not less than two hours long. The ministry indicated that the program aims to provide trainers with the necessary skills to offer specialized content that contributes to qualifying them to present the First Year of Marriage program to qualify those about to get married, create strong, successful marital relationships, and enhance family values, following the general framework for group training work and learning about the scientific content and components of the First Year of Marriage program training package. The min istry pointed out that the components of the First Year of Marriage training program include family values, sound marital choice, building strong marital relationships, five marriage challenges, and preparation for the practical application of the standards and tests included in the training package. The ministry noted that this program also contributes to enhancing couples' understanding of each other during the first year of marriage and being able to understand the foundations, principles, and skills of the First Year of Marriage program, which is presented to various target groups, and learning about the principles, developments, and challenges of family guidance and counseling in light of contemporary educational and social difficulties as well as the basics of dealing with it. The course targets those working in the field of Sharia and family justice and those working in the fields of family guidance and counseling, as well as marital and family training, in addition to psychological and social counse lors and specialists, as well as educators working in institutions that provide social, psychological, or legal support to spouses and certified trainers in the field of educational, psychological, and social work. Certified trainers in the course will review their effective approaches and strategies in dealing with the common challenges that couples face during the first year of marriage, as the program presents a distinguished set of knowledge, skills, scientific standards, and scientific experiences with their practical applications. The courses address several topics, the most important of which are the group training basics program, the trainer preparation program in marital training tools, the scientific content of the First Year of Marriage program package, and an introduction to supporting sciences in family counseling (Sharia rulings, personal status law, customs, personality types, effective communication skills, basic issues in education and psychology). Regarding the role of the MSDF, project d irector at MSDF Najla Al Humaidi said that marriage and family formation are among the most important and dangerous stages and decisions of life. The MSDF has adopted a national project under the title First Year of Marriage concerned with strengthening family values, spreading awareness, and qualifying those about to get married, based on the principles of Qatar National Vision 2030, which emphasizes the importance of maintaining a cohesive family, and in fulfillment of the role and mission of the MSDF in educating Qatari society about the importance of strengthening family cohesion and strengthening family ties and pillars. She explained that the First Year of Marriage program aims to help those about to get married and newlyweds and prepare them for married life by providing them with knowledge and experiences that enhance their abilities, develop their skills, support them in the process of selection and marital communication, and provide them with awareness to deal with life's challenges. In this conte xt, family and educational advisor Dr. Issa Al Horr stressed that this program is a commitment to strengthening marital relations and supporting society in building strong families. He expected that the course would result in the graduation of 40 family counselors accredited by the MSDF, as well as unifying trends and visions regarding counseling and family issues, producing memos and developmental research, and issuing an ethical charter (family training and counseling protocol). Source: Qatar News Agency