Twins Bisan, Bilsan Kouka win Arab Reading Challenge in Tunis

Gulf Today

16-07-2025

Twin students Bisan and Bilsan Kouka won the Arab Reading Challenge Champion title at the Tunisian level in its ninth edition.
They competed against 128,666 other students from 2,100 schools, overseen by 5,820 supervisors.
The winning twins, at the grade 6 (8 February 1958 School in Kef), were announced during the closing ceremony of the ninth edition of the Arab Reading Challenge in Tunis.
The ceremony was attended by Noureddine Nouri, Tunisia's Minister of Education, and Dr. Iman Ahmed Al Salami, UAE Ambassador to Tunisia, Dr Fawzan Al Khalidi, Director of Programmes and Initiatives at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation; and a large crowd of people interested in education and culture, as well as the parents of the competing students.
During the closing ceremony, Alia Bous'haq of the Kasserine delegation was honoured for her attainment of the title of 'Distinguished Supervisor', and Hafer El Mahr School from the Bizerte delegation was honoured with the title of 'Distinguished School'.
Differently-abled category: In the People of Determination category, in which 111 male and female students took part, Rahma Bouden won the Arab Reading Challenge Champion title. She is a second grade student at Al Nour School High School for the Blind, which is affiliated with the Ben Arous delegation.
In the ninth edition of the Arab Reading Challenge, ten students, both male and female, advanced to the final round at the level of the Tunisian Republic. The list comprised the twin students, Bisan and Bilsan Kouka, who secured first place, in addition to the following: Tasneem Al Jawady, a student in the third grade of the science track at the Model Institute School in Sidi Bouzid, affiliated with the Sidi Bouzid region, Ikram Habila, a student in the third grade of the experimental science track at the Model Institute School in Gabes (Gabes), Mohamed Al Jawady, a student in the ninth grade at Borj Al Tawil Preparatory School (Ariana), Islam Majoul, a student in the ninth grade at Al Shabi Preparatory School (Siliana). Marhaf Balid, a student in the sixth grade at Al Issad School in Sfax, Ibaa Milad, a student in the sixth grade at Tariq Al Sawani School in Zaghouan, and Abdel Rahman Alwani, a student in the third grade of the science track at Al Qasrin Institute School in Kasserine, Alaa Al Mandili, a student in the first grade of secondary education at Al Wafa Rawad Institute School in the Ariana region, and Maryam Faraj, a student in the fifth grade at Nahj Al Shuhada School in Mahres, Sfax.
32 million students: The ninth edition of the Arab Reading Challenge, the world's largest Arabic-language reading event, saw an unprecedented level of participation. A total of 32,231,000 students from 50 countries and 132,112 schools took part, overseen by 161,004 supervisors.
Noureddine Nouri stated that Tunisia's participation in the ninth edition of the Arab Reading Challenge is indicative of the Tunisian Ministry of Education's unwavering dedication to its ongoing engagement with this commendable knowledge initiative. The ministry is encouraging Tunisian students to approach the competition with utmost concentration and to strive to achieve victory on an international scale during the final round, which is scheduled to take place in Dubai.
He further explained that the dissemination of culture among the rising generations is a matter of significant concern for official and societal bodies in the Republic of Tunisia, constituting a paramount priority in the strategic plans and programmes of the nation's Ministry of Education. ts who participated in the qualifiers. He also praised the vital role played by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation in promoting knowledge and culture in the Arab world.
In the meantime, Dr Fawzan Al Khalidi pointed out that the Arab Reading Challenge is continuing its record-breaking journey. The ninth edition successfully attracted more than 32.2 million students, bringing the total number of participants across the nine editions to over 163 million. This demonstrates the broad horizons that this reading event opens up for students, and reinforces optimism about the ability of the next generation to revive Arab civilisation, enhance the status of the Arabic language, and benefit from the intellectual achievements of other cultures around the world.