The UAE provides a pioneering model for education and our knowledge initiatives support building a sustainable economy

Executive Director of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation, Jamal bin Huwaireb, stressed that “Emirati Education Day” represents an important national event that reflects the belief of the UAE and its wise leadership in the pivotal role of education in developing competencies, honing skills, and consolidating the foundations of a sustainable economy based on knowledge and innovation, which contributes to preparing generations capable of continuing the path of leadership and development.

On this occasion, he explained that the Foundation’s vision is based on the leadership’s directives, which made investing in people a long-term strategic option, based on the firm conviction that cognitive empowerment of generations is the basic foundation for enhancing national gains and achieving qualitative advances in various sectors.

He pointed out that the UAE continues the process of improving its educational system by adopting the latest tools and methodologies to keep pace with the rapid global transformations, presenting an advanced model of integrated education that puts people at the top of its priorities, and enhances their readiness with the knowledge and skills that enable them to contribute effectively to building the nation and accelerating the pace of sustainable development towards broader horizons and a more prosperous future.

Bin Huwaireb stressed the Foundation’s commitment to designing and implementing qualitative educational and knowledge initiatives at the local, regional and international levels. In this context, he reviewed a package of pioneering programmes, the most prominent of which is the “Future Skills Academy”, which is an integrated platform for qualifying Arab competencies with digital, functional and personal skills that are compatible with the requirements of future jobs. In its first phase, it registered about 22,000 learners who completed more than 209,000 educational hours, which contributes to preparing a generation capable of competing in the global labor market.

He also touched on the pivotal role of the Foundation’s “Digital Knowledge Center”, as the largest Arab incubator for open digital knowledge content, as it provides students, researchers and readers with more than 30 million digital, scientific and research materials for free, contributing to bridging the knowledge gap and promoting self-learning through advanced platforms. In addition to this, the Foundation supports linguistic identity through the “BelArabi” initiative, which encourages millions to use the Arabic language in the digital space, and enhances its presence as a language of science, research and innovation.

In the context of developing literary and intellectual creativity, the Executive Director of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation drew attention to the contributions of the Dubai International Writing Program in discovering and nurturing young talents and qualifying writers and translators to enrich the publishing industry. He pointed out that the program attracted 85 trainees during the past year alone, and implemented 5 training workshops under the supervision of 6 trainers, which resulted in the issuance of 6 new books by young authors. In addition, the “Knowledge Dialogues” series stands out as a global intellectual platform and open educational space that brings together thought leaders and experts to discuss development challenges and anticipate solutions, and is integrated with the “Academic Dialogues” initiative, which targets academic and research circles through scientific sessions that enhance communication between universities, research centers and decision makers, to support the transformation of knowledge into development policies and practices.

Jamal bin Huwaireb concluded his statement by emphasizing that through this integrated system of initiatives, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation continues to consolidate its role as a major driver in developing cognitive education based on innovation and technology, and empowering researchers and specialists, in a way that supports the UAE’s position as a global center for knowledge production and exchange, and an incubator for a culture of continuous learning as the true basis for progress and prosperity.