Sheikh Mohammed launches UAE Declaration of Arabic Language
- 19 Dec 2021
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, on Sunday launched the UAE Declaration of Arabic Language in the UAE Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.
The declaration was introduced in the presence of the Arab Ministers of Culture to mark the World Arabic Language Day, and in parallel with 22nd session of the Conference of Ministers Responsible for Cultural Affairs in the Arab World.
Sheikh Mohammed said, "Today, I attended the Arabic Language Summit, organised by the UAE Ministry of Culture and Youth, at Expo 2020 Dubai, accompanied by the Secretary-General of the Arab League and Arab ministers of culture. The Arabic language is a language of beauty, culture, and civilisation and one summit is certainly not enough.
"We signed the UAE Declaration on the Arabic Language. It is our declaration to commit to working together to enhance the status of the language that represents our identity, culture, and science."
The declaration was launched in the presence of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai; and Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.
The event was also attended by Mohammad Bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs; Noura Bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth and Chair of the 22nd session of the Conference of Ministers Responsible for Cultural Affairs in the Arab World; and Reem Bint Ibrahim Al Hashemy, Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director-General of Expo 2020 Dubai.
The UAE Declaration of Arabic Language was signed by Sheikh Mohammed along with Ahmed Abul Gheit, Secretary-General of the Arab League, Mohamed Ould Amar, Director-General of the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organisation (ALECSO), and Noura Al Kaabi.
The declaration aims to draw out a unified roadmap for various institutions in Arab countries. Al Kaabi gave a presentation to Sheikh Mohammed about the UAE Arabic Language Declaration and the efforts of the Ministry of Culture and Youth to preserve Arabic and enhance its presence internationally.
Al Kaabi said, "The first edition of the report on the Status and Future of the Arabic Language revealed the need for greater cooperation and better coordination between Arab nations through proper language planning and joint Arab action. Today we are taking an important step in that direction to implement the recommendations of the report by launching the UAE Arabic Language Declaration, which represents a comprehensive roadmap covering all areas related to the Arabic language."
She added, "The UAE Arabic Language Declaration is a reference for officials in Arab countries to launch initiatives and projects that preserve the Arabic language, enhance its presence globally and encourage its use among future generations. It also promotes the use of Arabic in the digital space, and associated industries while encouraging the use of technology in education and the spread of the Arabic language."
Last year, the Ministry of Culture and Youth launched a study into the status and future of the Arabic language to compile a report with the participation of 15 media organisations, 10 language universities and 18 universities around the world; 65 educational institutions from around the world contributed to the report.
On the other hand, Under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed, the first edition of the Global Arabic Language Summit began at Expo 2020 Dubai with the attendance of Sheikh Ahmed Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Media Council.
Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Youth, in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre, part of the Department of Culture and Tourism - Abu Dhabi, the two-day summit coincides with the 22nd Conference of Arab Culture Ministers, and represents an active platform enabling the public to converse with decision-makers.
The summit will discuss topics related to the Arabic language and the key recommendations of the report entitled "The Status and Future of the Arabic Language," which was published by the Ministry of Culture and Youth in December 2020.
Gheit, who is the summit’s guest of honour, highlighted the Arab League’s keenness to host the next edition of the report. Al Kaabi said that the main questions include whether the Arabic language can keep pace with the latest developments and the steps required to facilitate such efforts, highlighting her hope that the summit will find solutions to all issues concerning the Arabic language.
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has started providing its smart services on Amazon Alexa in Arabic, becoming the first government utility in the world to do this. Meanwhile, customers can now review their monthly bills in Arabic, check past statements, details of electricity and water consumption, their carbon footprint, as well as connect their Dewaaccount to other Amazon accounts.
They can also benefit from Rammas, Dewa’s virtual employee, which uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) on Amazon’s Alexa devices in Arabic to answer their enquiries. Moreover, customers can benefit from the Smart Living initiative, which enables them to make smart decisions to reduce their consumption proactively and digitally as well as solve problems and causes for increased consumption or waste on their own; without contacting Dewa.
WAM