Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Award honours Sheikh Mohammed with Achievement Award

The Sultan Bin Ali Al Owais Cultural Award announced the conferment of its Achievement Award in its nineteenth cycle upon His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, in recognition of his exceptional contributions to culture and knowledge over decades worldwide.

In a statement, the Award’s Board of Trustees said: “Since the Award honours thought rather than titles, and journeys rather than names, we reviewed a singular experience that has left a profound mark on culture, development and humanity.

The Board resolved to bestow the Achievement Award upon His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum in recognition of a career that has made generosity a way of life, development a mission, and the future a noble goal.”

The statement added that Sheikh Mohammed’s path was not merely a succession of achievements, but a vision that placed people at the heart of progress, made knowledge a tool for change, peace a universal approach and giving a lasting legacy. Every project and institution he launched has been a beacon of hope and inspiration.

The Board affirmed that this recognition reflects a unique model of comprehensive renaissance linking humanity, knowledge, culture, economy and peace, and redefining the very meaning of achievement.

The statement highlighted Sheikh Mohammed’s vision of placing culture, knowledge, science and innovation at the core of sustainable development. He transformed human giving into an enduring system that supports communities and empowers individuals without distinction of religion or race, an embodiment of his human-centred philosophy.

Among his most influential initiatives is the Arab Reading Challenge, the world’s largest Arabic-language reading competition launched in 2015 to promote a culture of reading and advance the Arabic language. It has attracted more than 163 million students and earned wide recognition across the Arab world, affirming Sheikh Mohammed’s belief that reading is the cornerstone of intellectual and civilisational progress.

Also noted was The Great Arab Minds Award, launched in 2022 to discover, empower and honour exceptional Arab talents whose contributions advance science, culture and innovation across the region and revive the Arab world’s role in global civilisation.

The Board cited the establishment of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Library under the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives as a key milestone supporting the UAE’s cultural strategy and enriching the Arab intellectual landscape. It also highlighted the launch of the Digital School in 2020, the first integrated digital school of its kind, which provides quality blended learning for students in underserved regions.

The Board referred to the Mohammed Bin Rashid Award for the Arabic Language, which enhances the language’s global stature and connects it to scientific and technological progress. Now in its ninth edition, the award serves as a global platform for creativity and innovation in service of the Arabic language, alongside a modern Arabic dictionary of scientific and technical terminology.

The statement praised Sheikh Mohammed’s literary and poetic contributions that have enriched both national and Arab libraries, including My Vision, My Story, Life Taught Me, Reflections on Happiness and Positivity, Glimpses of Wisdom, For the Love of Horses, and Forty Poems from the Desert.

The Board also highlighted several prestigious awards established by Sheikh Mohammed in the fields of culture, arts, science and Quranic studies, including the Dubai International Holy Quran Award and The Great Arab Minds Award, reaffirming the UAE’s leadership in culture and innovation at both regional and global levels.

WAM