Arab Reading Challenge award ceremony begins in Dubai
Image Credit: Ahmed Ramzan/Gulf News
Dubai: The youngest participant in this year’s Arab Reading Challenge, seven-year old Sham Bakour from Syria, on Thursday joined the pantheon of Arab reading champions, besting millions of Arab youth from across the world who participated in the annual reading challenge launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, in 2015.
Standing beside His Highness before the announcement of winners, Bakour, who won Dh500,000, displayed confidence and grace at such a young age. She earlier defeated more than 61,000 participants in Syria to claim the right to represent her home country in the biggest reading challenge in the Arab world.
Finishing in second place was Adam Al Qasimi from Tunisia, while Rashid Al Khateeb from Jordan came in third place.
The three other finalists who vied for the Dh500,000 grand prize were Areej Al Qarni from KSA, Ghala Al Enzi (Kuwait),) and Mohammed Jamil (Bahrain).
A total of Dh1.9 million in prize money was awarded today. Besides the Dh500,000 for the best champion Bakour, Dh1 million was given to the best school Al Mokhtar School in Morrocco, Dh300,000 for the outstanding supervisor Noor Jabour from Jordan, and Dh100,000 for the community champion Nada Al Sattari, a Palestinian student from Belgium. The last is a category for Arab students living in non-Arab countries).
Sheikh Mohammed earlier tweeted: “Millions of Arab youth rush to read 50 books every year, which is a push to a better future for all of us… Since its launch in 2015, the Arab Reading Challenge has attracted the participation of nearly 79 million students. They are the beacon of knowledge that will drive our development in the coming decades.
Sheikh Mohammed also underscored Arab Reading Challenge is the largest and most successful investment in Arab minds, to regain the glories of the Arab civilisation, by creating new generations that are capable of advancing their societies.
More to follow
