Ministry of Health and Prevention Launches ‘Kids’ Community Program to Increase Children’s Knowledge on Diabetes

UAE, November 19th, 2018 – As part of its commitment to educate children about diabetes, the Ministry of Health and Prevention, in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Sanofi, hosted an awareness event at the Dubai Festival City Mall in line with its ‘Kids and Diabetes in Schools’ (Kids) program.

The program aims to promote better understanding of the impact of the disease on kids and highlight the role of families and the entire community members in the effective management of diabetes. This year, the reach of the initiative went beyond the confines of the schools to raise community awareness about key health issues. Continue reading “Ministry of Health and Prevention Launches ‘Kids’ Community Program to Increase Children’s Knowledge on Diabetes”

‘Hackathon’ Competition Winners

Mansoor Bin Mohammed Honors Outstanding Winners of ‘Hackathon’ Competition

‘Emirati Programmer’ gives young local talents an opportunity to join global programming competitions

  • 4 young Emirati talents win the title of ‘Innovative Emirati Programmer’
  • International jury evaluates creative applications in line with UAE’s national policies
  • Local contestants demonstrate high-level skills in programming, computer thinking systems, digital applications, & electronic games

UAE, November 12, 2017 – H.H. Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum honored the ‘Innovative Emirati Programmer’ winners of the ‘Hackathon’ competition organized by the Emirates Talent Association and Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University (HBMSU). The recognition marked the culmination of the successful first batch of the ‘Emirati Programmer,’ the first-of-its-kind national initiative in the UAE launched to enhance the skills of Emirati programmers in programming languages, computer thinking systems, the basics of digital application and electronic games development. Continue reading “‘Hackathon’ Competition Winners”

MBRSC opens the space centre at KidZania

MBRSC brings space science & technology to children with a unique and engaging satellite manufacturing project

Dubai, UAE, December 26th, 2016 – The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has officially opened its section within KidZania®, the award-winning children’s edutainment centre managed by Emaar Entertainment in The Dubai Mall. The new MBRSC space science and technology section enables the young visitors to join a team in designing and manufacturing their very own observation satellite, before witnessing the launch and then controlling the satellite as it orbits the Earth. Continue reading “MBRSC opens the space centre at KidZania”

DEWA Concludes 1st Children’s Summer Camp

Dubai, UAE, 28 August 2016 – Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has successfully concluded its first Summer Camp. The camp was held under the theme ‘Engineers of the Future’ for children between the ages of 12-15, and took place from 7-18 August 2016, as part of the Reading is Positive Energy exhibition.

The exhibition was organised by DEWA in cooperation with the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation (MBRF), at Gate 2 of Zabeel Park. The summer camp encouraged innovation and creativity among the children, while providing an educational platform for them to develop their skills in engineering, electricity, mechanics, science and maths. The camp also featured specialised training programmes allowing children to develop their communication and teamwork skills, and daily activities and competitions to prepare them for their future careers, while motivating the younger generation to learn about science and technology. Continue reading “DEWA Concludes 1st Children’s Summer Camp”

Imdaad commends Educational Excellence of four 12th Grade Toppers for School Year 2015-2016

UAE, July 10th 2016 – Imdaad, a leading provider of integrated facilities, environment and energy management solutions in the GCC, has commended the top students in the 12th grade for School Year 2015 – 2016 in line with its efforts to emphasize the importance of educational excellence at a ceremony held recently.

The company awarded Hajar Ahmad Al Ktefan for scoring 99.9 percent and Razan Sulaiman Mohamed Mousa Alkaabi for scoring 99.2 percent both in the Science discipline.

Imdaad also recognized Israa Ahmed Abouelhussein Ibrahim for scoring 99.3 per cent and Wafa Rashed Mohammed Bin Sayyah Alyammahi for scoring 99.0 per cent in the Literary discipline.

Imdaad’s CEO, Jamal Abdullah Lootah, presented the students with the award and recognition. The ceremony drew the attendance and participation of Imdaad representatives, as well as the parents of the top students.

Taqaddam Helps to Inspire Young UAE Nationals

Youth-development programme concludes with high profile national competition

Pristine Private School takes the honours with competition win

Dubai, UAE, May 17th 2016 – Over 240 students from 12 Dubai schools have been inspired to reach greater personal heights after successfully completing the youth development programme Taqaddam.

HSBC Bank Middle East Ltd and the British Council have worked in partnership to deliver the new initiative that has helped young men and women in the UAE to build their self-confidence and develop the life skills they need to fulfil their potential.

Capping the seven week programme was the ‘Future Ideas’ competition,  which asked the students to devise an innovative idea that addressed key global challenges. Continue reading “Taqaddam Helps to Inspire Young UAE Nationals”

King’s School in Dubai (video)

Kings’ Schools is a prestigious schools group. Schools include the founding school Kings’ School Dubai in Umm Suqeim as well as Kings’ School Al Barsha and Kings’ School Nad Al Sheba and our head office Kings’ Education.
Kings’ School Dubai is the only school in the Emirates to have achieved the rating of “outstanding” for six years since inspections by the Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau began. Our schools have a British heritage and an international perspective where children become effective, enthusiastic and independent life-long learners who are able to adapt to the changes and challenges of a fast-moving, modern world.

Autodesk Empowers Students to Bring their Ideas to Life at GESS Dubai 2016

Leading software company throws the spotlight on design solutions Memento and Fusion 360 as strategic tools to help nurture and enhance student creativity
Dubai, UAE, March 3rd, 2016 – Autodesk, a leading design software company that is playing a very innovative role in the education sector, globally and in the Middle East region, has expressed its eagerness to help empower students in bringing their creative ideas to life.

The statement came during the company’s participation at Global Educational Supplies and Solutions Dubai 2016 (GESS Dubai 2016), the region’s only event dedicated to the entire spectrum of educational supplies and solutions, which opened last March 1, 2016 and will run until March 3, 2016 at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). The company has revealed that 3D technology has now become a more common part of today’s classrooms, which has resulted in the discovery that students are making significant contributions to the world around them at young ages. Looking to further nurture their creative talents, Autodesk will be holding specialized workshops for students visiting GESS Dubai 2016—throwing the spotlight on its key design solutions Memento and Fusion 360.

During the show, the company will be leveraging Fusion 360 and Memento as the perfect complement in further encouraging and developing the design skills of today’s students. These powerful and easy-to-use solutions converts photos and laser scans into 3D meshes that can be cleaned up, transformed and 3D printed so that anyone, even the young, can explore captured objects from across the world.  In the US, students as young as 13 years old have used Fusion 360 to conceptualize and 3D print prosthetic devices to college teams developing environmentally sustainable homes using BIM 360 Glue. Young talents are pushing the boundaries of design and innovation both inside and outside of the classroom using the same design software used by professionals every day. With Autodesk’s education business model, there is now more than 680 million students and educators from over 800,000 secondary and post-secondary schools in 188 countries taking advantage of free access to Autodesk’s professional software and services for use in classrooms, labs and at home. The company has affirmed its continued commitment in investing in the next generation—offering free access to Autodesk software to students, educators, and academic institutions worldwide.

Autodesk continues to provide free access to industry-standard professional 3D design software and learning content to students, educators and schools worldwide. The move demonstrates the company’s commitment towards providing today’s youth with the necessary tools and resources needed in helping them achieve success in their academic and future careers. Autodesk originally offered free software to college students but has now also started to provide it free to middle school and high school students in the UAE. To ensure wider reach, the company maintains active collaborations with ADVETI Institutes, Secondary Technical School (STS) and many universities. In fact, the success of this initiative can be seen in Autodesk’s move to empower 16-year-old Emirati girl students to design next generation mini-F1 cars. 

Dubai Smart Government Signs MoU with KHDA to Support Electronic and Smart Services

UAE, November 9, 2015 – Dubai Smart Government Department (DSG) and Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), under which DSG will offer the necessary support for its electronic and smart shared services provided to KHDA in line with the directives of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, for Dubai government services to be available round the clock.

The services which KHDA benefits from include the Government Resources Planning Systems (GRPS), Government Information Network (GIN), MyID, ePay, Government Service Bus, Correspondence Tracking System, SMS Dubai, eSurvey, Happiness Meter, eHost, eComplain, eSuggest etc.
The MoU also stipulates that the levels of this support and the priority-based response period should be specified with a view to fulfilling the leadership’s vision that efforts should be combined to achieve Dubai Vision 2021 and the ultimate goal of bringing happiness to customers.
Commenting on the MoU, H.E. Ahmad Bin Humaidan, DSG Director General, said: “DSG works as per a clear strategy aimed at reaching a connected and collaborative smart government by meeting the needs of all government entities in implementation of the smart government objectives as announced by HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and the directives of HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, for prompt transformation to smart government for Dubai to become the smartest and most innovative city in the world and for the UAE to consolidate its lead in smart transformation worldwide.”
Bin Humaidan added: “We have signed an MoU with KHDA based on our commitment to employ our enablers including advanced infrastructure, smart services, systems and high-level technical support with a view to improving the readiness of the smart services which KHDA benefits from as well as developing them and ensuring their sustainability based on our belief in the important role played by KHDA in building a high-quality educational sector for the happiness and improved satisfaction of customers.”
Meanwhile, H.E. Dr. Abdulla Al Karam, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director General of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority, said: “This MoU is a significant step towards ensuring the sustainability of KHDA’s services as per the world’s best standards, benefiting from the high performance of the shared services provided by DSG.”
Al Karam believed co-operation between the two sides would serve the interests of customers including schools, universities, students, parents, educational staff, investors and government partners for building a high-quality educational sector keen on bringing happiness to its community.
Al Karam affirmed that KHDA is working on achieving the prudent leadership’s vision for all efforts to be combined in order to fulfil the UAE vision and Dubai transformation to the world’s smartest city, valuing DSG’s role and unique transformations of all Dubai entities. He also praised DSG’s methodology of work, which serves in consolidating the transformation to smart government, reiterating that KHDA is proud to strengthen its partnership with DSG and appreciates working with it.

Earlier, DSG has been awarded an ISO 20000:2011 Certification for IT service management, which proves its commitment to the global IT standards for improving the performance of services in general, and makes it highly qualified for effectively providing support services to government entities.
DSG has recently launched at Gitex Technology Week 2015 new smart shared services: Dubai Government’s CloudOne, which provides a smart shared infrastructure that enables Dubai government entities to easily access many IT resources, thereby saving the expenses and efforts needed to build these resources individually, and Watson interactive system, which employs artificial intelligence for the public dealing with government services. DSG has also launched Dubai Now that, combines a large number of smart government services for 22 Dubai government entities participating in the app so far. 

Al Hammadi: “UAE is leading global trends towards modern education systems”

UAE Minister of Education: “We will continue to integrate basic IT skills & digital literacy in school curriculum.”
Ministry of Education’s Assistant Undersecretary of Support Services: “Modern designs for schools & attractive learning environment for teachers, administrators & students.”

UAE, June 9, 2015 – H.E. Hussain Al Hammadi, UAE Minister of Education, has announced that the five principles to unleash the potential of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) agreed upon at the International Conference on ICT and Post-2015 Education held recently in Qingdao, China, are the same as those guaranteed by the UAE’s Constitution and Legislations. These principles are in line with the development strategy of UAE Vision 2021, the UAE National Agenda, and the Ministry’s Education Development Plan 2015-2021.
H.E. Al Hammadi pointed out that since the declaration of the Union, the UAE has realized the value of five principles, namely, the right of education, equity, integration, quality education and lifelong learning, which formed the main themes of the conference. The UAE also realized early on and proactively that it is important and necessary that everyone gets good, equal and comprehensive education in order to build modern, sustainable, inclusive and knowledge-based societies.  
H.E. Al Hammadi expressed his views at the conference where he headed a high-profile official delegation from the UAE that included H.E. Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi, Assistant Undersecretary of Support Services. The International Conference on ICT and Post-2015 Education was inaugurated by Liu Yandong, Vice-Premier of the State Council of China, in the presence of the Ministers of Education, a host of senior educational officials, experts and specialists representing over 90 countries.
Speaking on the occasion, H.E. Al Hammadi said that the global educational system is witnessing rapid transformations and long-term directives that are directly related to major advances in ICT, cognitive revolution, and the knowledge-economy society. This was evident throughout the conference, where various topics were discussed during the specialized panels. He emphasized that the UAE enjoys a leading position in terms of providing education systems that keep pace with the changing time as confirmed by UAE Vision 2021. The vision calls on the need to invest in science, technology and research at various levels with special emphasis on education and its development to provide students with the knowledge and skills of the 21st century to increase specialized scientific abilities in the present and the future.
H.E. Al Hammadi revealed that attendees focused on e-Learning, and the UAE, as it seeks to achieve the highest global competitive rates, talked about ‘smart’ learning and post smart learning. The country has also adopted a series of development programs that support this renewed type of education in its curricula, teaching methods, assessment and exam systems, infrastructure, and extracurricular activities. These, along with the support of an elite list of educators and administrators, will support the Ministry in developing a school environment that incubates creativity and innovation while stimulating ingenuity. These concepts have been adopted by the global education systems now and were revisited during the deliberations regarding the future of education and technology beyond 2015.
H.E. Al Hammadi confirmed that ICT for learning and other fields is no longer a specialized skill, but is the basis for success in modern societies. He noted that the Ministry of Education adopts what was affirmed by the conference about the importance of integrating basic ICT skills and digital literacy in the curriculum of primary and secondary schools. Moreover, it provides many unprecedented educational opportunities to enable Emirati students to use digital devices to enhance their familiarity with modern sciences, knowledge, and specialized research. Additionally, the Ministry focuses on developing students’ administrative, educational and technical skills that will help them in utilizing knowledge to keep abreast with the latest technology by inventing smart teaching tools, reflecting the distinctive capabilities of the UAE’s educational arena.
H.E. Al Hammadi pointed out that the UAE Ministry of Education, in cooperation with its strategic partners and institutions concerned with the education sector, is developing comprehensive National Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Systems in order to provide sound evidences to formulate policies on recruitment and use and measure the impact of ICT in education. He also added that through these joint efforts the Ministry aims to enhance the management of the educational system, ensuring compliance with the highest standards of educational practices and strengthening the planning, implementation and follow-up process, in addition to promoting sustainability concepts in education.
H.E. Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi, Assistant Undersecretary for Support Services, said: “The Ministry of Education is intensifying its efforts to create new opportunities to utilize all available capabilities which represent the core of the educational process and the backbone of development. These capabilities include human resources, infrastructure, educational equipments and tools, school facilities, auditing, evaluation, and follow-up systems along with other logistic factors that support the efforts to develop the education sector and achieve sustainability within school community.”
He added: “The Ministry is focusing on providing professional development opportunities for teachers, administrators and staff in schools, as they are the pillars of the education sector. We believe that investing in human capital is of great significance due to its vital role and that its development requires the implementation of high-level educational practices as well as conformity with the highest standards of professionalism to ensure optimal management of the development process by qualified personnel. The Ministry looks forward to strengthening existing partnerships with leading consulting firms as well as with the universities and educational institutions in the UAE which can share their experience in implementing and supervising various training programs.”
H.E. Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi stated that according to the China Conference, the requirements of educational development include good education, quality of educational services related to modern educational and service facilities, advanced equipments, and innovative educational techniques and technology. He said that these requirements are the most important elements for positively changing school operations. They are also effective tools for supporting the Ministry’s objective of enhancing schools in the UAE and making them attractive for students, teachers and administrators.
“The Ministry has approved new designs that aim to develop modern schools in the UAE. We look forward to opening the new schools soon in line with our efforts to achieve the objective of our development plan and keep pace with global movements. The schools will include sustainable facilities developed according to the highest standards of Green Buildings, an institution developed in accordance with the special specifications of smart learning systems, as well as special-purpose facilities such as rooms for learning resources and enrichment activities. The modern schools will also include technical and scientific laboratories that are being developed in line with the requirements of advanced curricula and innovative teaching methods. The Open Classroom is one of the highlights of the modern schools, as they support the objectives of the educational development plan aimed at providing high-quality service and educational outcomes to enable students to enroll in the best universities in the UAE and abroad without prior preparation,” H.E. Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi added.
H.E. Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi said that the Ministry is aiming to enhance the operational efficiency of schools in the UAE through a series of roles related to administrative and financial affairs, pointed out that the step will facilitate the educational process, meet the daily needs of the schools in accordance with the applicable regulations and in a flexible manner, to achieve the objectives of Q-Scale Project and other leading initiatives. The final statement of the conference emphasized the importance of encouraging lifelong learning, promoting innovative and advanced Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) methods, and supporting the concept of accountability. It also reflected the urgent need for adopting the principles and methods of online education, and activating the role of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in improving learning paths and enabling all segments of society, especially those with special needs, to gain access to educational services.
The statement also highlighted the significance of ICT-based innovative educational tools as main contributors in maximizing employment opportunities, especially in the fields that require certified skills.