Sheikh Mohammed congratulates Reem Al Zarouni, says she outperformed 800,000 students
Sheikh Mohammed congratulated Reem Adel Ahmed Al Zarouni, from Al Ittihad National Private School in Abu Dhabi, for winning the UAE-level Arab Reading Challenge champion title, commending her outstanding achievement and wishing her continued success.
Sheikh Mohammed shared on X: "Today, the UAE celebrated 810,000 students from 1,380 schools who participated in the Arab Reading Challenge, which has engaged over 32 million students globally. I thank my brother Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed for his patronage of this important national student initiative.
'Congratulations to Reem Adel Al Zarouni of Al Ittihad National School in Abu Dhabi for her exceptional performance, surpassing 800,000 other students. During the challenge, she read 300 books and demonstrated a remarkable understanding of their content.'
'I am proud of the participation of UAE students and delighted by this generation's passion for reading. The future of our nation is secure in the hands of a generation that embraces knowledge and reading."
This came on the occasion of crowning Mariam Adel Ahmad Al Zarouni as the UAE-level Arab Reading Challenge Champion in its 9th edition, during a ceremony organized by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI) at the Dubai World Trade Centre to mark the end of UAE-level qualifiers of the Challenge.
The ceremony was attended by Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Education, Human Resources and Community Development Council.
Speaking at the ceremony, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed said, "Crowning the UAE-level Arab Reading Challenge champion is a celebration of the nation's investment in its youth, yielding a harvest of success and achievement. This achievement stemmed from the visionary initiative of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and has resulted in a generation embracing reading as a path to excellence and innovation."
During the ceremony, Sheikh Abdullah crowned Mariam Adel Ahmad Al Zarouni from Al Ittihad National Private School - Abu Dhabi as the UAE-level Arab Reading Challenge Champion, and honoured the top three students who won the final UAE-level qualifying rounds and the People of Determination category.
Sheikh Abdullah added, "Congratulations to the UAE Arab Reading Challenge Champion Reem Al Zarouni who embodied ambition and perseverance, setting an inspiring example of a love for reading, a thirst for knowledge, and pride in the Arabic language. Congratulations to all the participating students, whose positive attitude inspired and reflected their passion for knowledge and reading.
'This is a collective achievement where the roles of families, teachers, and educational institutions unite to foster a love of reading and provide a supportive learning environment conducive to success and creativity."
Sheikh Abdullah concluded, "The UAE is dedicated to supporting cultural and knowledge initiatives, grounded in the belief that reading is essential for human development. By fostering a love of reading, we cultivate generations who value knowledge, embrace their identity, and are empowered to shape a bright future."
The ceremony was attended by Mohammad Al Gergawi, Minister of CaBinet Affairs and Secretary General of Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI); Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of Education; Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation and Acting Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research; Sheikh Salem Bin Khalid Al Qassimi, Minister of Culture.
Others present at the ceremony were Maryam Bint Ahmed Al Hammadi, Minister of State and Secretary General of the UAE CaBinet; Her Excellency Hessa Bint Essa Buhumaid, Director General of the Community Development Authority in Dubai; Her Excellency Hajer Ahmed Al Thehli, Secretary-General of Education and Human Resources Council (EHRC); Mohammed Al Qasim, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education and Saeed Al Eter, Assistant Secretary General of Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI), along with officials and educators overseeing the Arab Reading Challenge, knowledge and education stakeholders and a large group of students and parents of participants in the Challenge.
810,000 students
Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of Education, honoured the rest of the top ten students who won the UAE-level final round of qualifiers, while Mohammed Al Qasim, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education honoured the national coordinator for the Arab Reading Challenge, as well as winners of UAE-level Outstanding Supervisor and Best School awards.
The crowning of Reem Al Zarouni, a seventh-grader at Al Ittihad National Private School - Abu Dhabi - Khalifa A, as the UAE champion of the 9th Arab Reading Challenge, following country-level qualifiers that attracted over 810,000 students representing 1,380 schools and mentored by over 2,005 supervisors.
Zahra Hamad Ibrahim from Dubai received the Outstanding Supervisor award, and Atika Bint Zaid School - Cycle 1 (Sharjah) won the Best School Award.
In the People of Determination category, Abdullah Ahmad Rashid Abdullah Al Dhanhani, an eleventh-grader at Hamad Bin Abdullah Al Sharqi School - Cycle 3 Boys (Fujairah), secured first place. He was chosen from three finalists by the
Qualifying champions
Ten students qualified for the final round of the UAE-level challenge. In addition to Reem Al Zarouni, the finalists included: Saeed Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan (2nd grade, Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Awal School, Abu Dhabi); Omar Saeed Rashid Abdullah Al Suwaidi (8th grade, Military High School, Sharjah); Hamad Ibrahim Saeed Al Balushi (6th grade, Applied Technology High School, Al Ain); Abdullah Khalil Sahakouh Al Dhuhouri (10th grade, Hamad Bin Abdullah Al Sharqi School - Cycle 3 Boys, Fujairah); Mohammed Yasser Abdul Baqi Hassan Al Marzouqi (10th grade, Hamdan Bin Rashid Secondary School, Dubai); Amna Issa Ali Al Shehhi (12th grade, Falaj Al Mualla School, Umm Al Quwain); Hajar Abdullah Salem Al Mazroui (10th grade, Al Najah School - Cycle 2 & 3 Girls, Ras Al Khaimah); Hareb Fahad Rashid Ali Al Hafiti (8th grade, Military High School, Al Ain); and Sara Abdullah Salman Hussein Al Marzouqi (11th grade, Al Marfaa Schools - Cycle 2 & 3 Girls, Al Dhafra).
Leading initiative
Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of Education, emphasised that the Arab Reading Challenge embodies the UAE's vision and commitment to fostering knowledge and awareness among the youth.
Al Amiri noted that this UAE-born challenge, with its global reach, has become a leading international knowledge initiative. It has successfully established reading as a sustainable practice for students, recognising its fundamental role in developing awareness and shaping the future.
Al Amiri highlighted the unprecedented student participation in the UAE-level qualifiers, from both public and private schools in the 9th edition. The substantial growth in participation since the Challenge's launch demonstrates its profound impact and success in engaging students year after year.
Al Amiri congratulated all winners and participants, commending the remarkable turnout and broad engagement, which reflect the students' cultural awareness and dedication to enhancing their knowledge and language skills.Reem Adel Ahmad Al Zarouni will represent the UAE in the final round of the Arab Reading Challenge, held in Dubai, vying for the title in the 9th edition. The competition involves multiple elimination rounds, culminating in the selection of champions who have read, summarised, and demonstrated comprehension of 50 books.
The competition progresses from the classroom to the school, district, and country levels, ultimately leading to the selection of national champions from participating countries, both within the Arab world and internationally. Distinguished champions and schools are selected based on comprehensive, standardised criteria.
In the People of Determination category, participants are required to read 25 books.The UAE has consistently demonstrated strong participation and achieved significant milestones in the Arab Reading Challenge. Notably, Amna Mohammed Al Mansouri won the title in the 2023 seventh edition, which saw 24.8 million students from 46 countries participate.
Al Ebdaa School - Cycle 1 received the Best School award in the eighth edition, involving over 28 million students from 50 countries. In the fifth edition, with over 21 million participants from 52 countries, Moza Al Ghannah earned the Outstanding Supervisor award.
The ninth edition of the Arab Reading Challenge, an initiative of MBRGI, achieved record participation with 32.231 million students from 132,112 schools in 50 countries, guided by 161,004 supervisors.
Launched in the 2015-2016 academic year under the direction of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Arab Reading Challenge aims to promote reading among students, within the Arab world as well as globally, and cultivate creative thinking.
It also aims to cultivate a vibrant Arabic reading culture, emphasising the language's capacity for all forms of knowledge and encouraging its daily use among youth. This empowers students with the knowledge to build a brighter future, refine their skills and character, understand other cultures and embrace the values of tolerance, coexistence and acceptance.
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