Abu Dhabi, May 25 2013: A key strategic initiative of the Abu Dhabi Technology Development Committee (TDC), the Abu Dhabi Science Festival was recently awarded the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) project prize in the category of “ICT application; e-science”, hosted May 13-17th in Geneva, Switzerland during the WSIS Forum, a summit organized by the United Nations’ International Telecommunications Union.
The Festival which aims to spark the scientific curiosity of the UAE youth in a broader program of initiatives designed to develop a talented human capital base in STI was granted the prestigious global award on playing a key role in enabling Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) development in the UAE. On accepting the award, Director General of TDC, Ahmed Saeed Al Calily stated: “I am extremely proud to accept this prestigious global award on behalf of TDC and would like to thank the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority for nominating the Abu Dhabi Science Festival. This award is a true demonstration to the success of the initiative and the hard work put in by all of our partners who have helped us win this prize.”
Nominated by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), and featured among 280 initiatives from 64 countries, the Abu Dhabi Science Festival was among the initiatives winning globally and solely from the UAE.
WSIS Project Prizes is an international contest developed in response to requests of the WSIS Stakeholders that requested for an effective mechanism to evaluate and recognize individuals; governments; civil society; local, regional and international agencies; research institutions; and private sector companies for outstanding success in implementing development-oriented strategies that leverage the power of ICTs.
He added: “Winning this international award and the success that we have achieved throughout our science promotion initiatives is a clear indication that the Festival is a foundation to our aim of embedding the importance of Science and Technology in the minds of our future generations. We are determined to continue moving forward and the planning is underway to ensure an even better 2013 edition”, said Al Calily.
Speaking on behalf of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), H.E. Eng. Majed Sultan Almesmar, Deputy Director General for Telecommunications Sector, said: “The Abu Dhabi Science Festival is a significant opportunity to recognize the nation’s talented young scientists and also encourage other young people to develop an interest in science. Importantly, the focus of this event ties in with the UAE Vision 2021 that seeks to create a sustainable economy through developing local talent in many of the UAE’s industries including science.”
“Of course this also applies to the ICT sector. The sector requires more national scientists in order to advance the UAE ICT industry into a position of global excellence. This is the reason why the TRA were keen to nominate the Abu Dhabi Science Festival for this award,” he added.
The Abu Dhabi Science Festival last year attracted over 120,000 visitors including 20,000 school children in organized school tours and showcased over 170 world-class informal, interactive science education activities delivered by 800 university students recruited and trained as science communicators.
TDC is a multi-stakeholder Government body mandated to build a strong STI base in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi through a var