Dubai International Holy Quran launches the public voting stage to choose the most beautiful Quranic voice for the year 2026

The Dubai International Holy Quran Award announced the launch of the final stage of the search for the most beautiful Qur’anic voice for the year 2026 within the 28th session of the award, by opening the door to public voting for the contestants, after the jury selected 6 contestants from the most beautiful voices during the first and second qualifying stages, 3 contestants in the male branch, and 3 contestants in the female branch.

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, “may God protect him,” said: “As we welcome the month of mercy and blessing, we renew our pledge to celebrate the Holy Qur’an, spread its tolerant message, and motivate generations to carry its values.”

The Dubai International Holy Quran Award, which is held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, has opened the door to voting for the public to choose the most beautiful Quranic voice of the year 2026 from among 6 contestants in the male and female branches who succeeded in reaching the final qualifiers to be held in Dubai during the holy month of Ramadan, where the contestants will participate in the activities accompanying the award, and the award allowed the public to vote via the website: quran.gov.ae

The award also announced the names of the six contestants who reached the final stage of the qualifiers. From the male section, they are: Omar Ali Awad from the Arab Republic of Egypt, Abdullah Faisal Al-Bati from the State of Kuwait, and Karrar Laith Saad from the Republic of Iraq, and from the female category: Aisha Al-Rumi from the Republic of Indonesia, Sarah Abdel Karim Al-Hallaq from the Syrian Arab Republic, and Jana Ihab Ramadan from the Arab Republic of Egypt.

The award will announce the result of the vote and the winner of the most beautiful Qur’anic voice of the year 2026 during the ceremony honoring the winners, which will be held next March 2 in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, where the first winner of the most beautiful Qur’anic voice of the year 2026 in the male branch will be honored with a prize of one million dollars, and the first winner will be honored with a prize of one million dollars, in addition to honoring the international Qur’anic figure with a prize of one million dollars.

Director General of the Department of Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities in Dubai and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Dubai International Holy Quran Award, Ahmed Darwish Al Muhairi, said: “Under the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, the Dubai International Holy Quran Award, in its 28th session, has launched into a new phase through its comprehensive development vision, embodying Dubai’s firm commitment to remain a global beacon that preserves the values of the Holy Quran and spreads its sublime message, where The qualitative additions in this development vision move the award from the realm of traditional competition to the horizons of global leadership by expanding international participation by raising the value of the awards to become the largest in the world, creating a female category and providing the opportunity to participate through direct personal nomination, in addition to opening the door to public voting in the final qualifiers to choose the most beautiful Qur’anic voice for the year 2026.”

Al Muhairi stressed that the award aimed, by opening the door to public voting for the candidates who qualified for the final stage, to create a spiritual movement across continents during the holy month. To interact with the Book of God and its tolerant values, and to connect Muslims in various parts of the earth with the sweetness of the revelation and the beauty of the voices, indicating that the arrival of these six finalists to the final stage is an inspiring message through which we present luminous examples that prove that the message of the Qur’an is a message of life, development, and lasting peace for the entire world.”

The Dubai International Holy Quran Award launched its twenty-eighth session for the year (1447 AH – 2026 AD), with a new development vision that places it at the forefront of the most distinguished awards at the global level, confirming the Emirate of Dubai’s pioneering position in serving the Holy Book of God.

The new session brought qualitative additions that enhance the award’s 28-year history, most notably raising the total value of the prizes to more than 12 million dirhams, where the first place winner will receive one million dollars in each category (males and females).

Participation was also opened for females for the first time through a special category for them, raising the number of award categories to 3 categories: the male category, the female category, and the International Qur’anic Personality Award.

The new session witnessed the expansion of the circle of international participation, the increase in the value of the financial rewards for the winners of the award, the modernization of the nomination, arbitration and evaluation mechanisms, and the provision of the opportunity to participate through direct personal nomination, in addition to the usual nomination from the participant’s own country or by an accredited Islamic center in accordance with the approved conditions, which opens the door to more talents from various parts of the world, and contributes to consolidating the leadership of the award at the global level.

The latest qualitative addition to the award came in opening participation to the public in voting for the most beautiful Qur’anic voice of the year 2026, which takes the competition from the space of artistic arbitration to the broader humanitarian space that turns millions around the world into partners in celebrating the spirituality of the holy month and the values ​​of the Book of God, and creates a state of cross-border interaction that connects the hearts of generations with the sweetness and beauty of Qur’anic voices.

In its 28th session, the Dubai International Holy Quran Award achieved a major leap in the number of participants, as the award received 5,618 applications for participation from 105 countries, 30% of which were in the female award category. Registration applications included entries from Arab and Islamic countries and Islamic communities in the United States, Canada, Russia, and countries from various continents.

During the first evaluation stage, all applications of male and female applicants to participate in the award and their recorded recitations were subjected to evaluation, based on the provisions of intonation and good performance, and according to accurate and fair mechanisms, controls and standards, as the award selected 525 participants, including 373 in the male branch, and 152 in the female branch, to move to the second judging stage.

The second judging stage represented an important stage of competition, as judging was conducted via direct visual communication between the contestants and the judging committee, to evaluate the most beautiful Qur’anic voice for the year 2026, mastery of the rules of intonation, and good performance, according to precise and equal controls and standards from a judging committee that includes an elite group of proficient and licensed scholars in the sciences of the Holy Qur’an who have extensive experience in judging international competitions. At the conclusion of the second stage, the six contestants were selected to move to the final stage.