Dubai, December 5, 2016-- His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, attended the opening ceremony of the Knowledge Summit 2016, being organised by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation (MBRF) on December 5-7, 2016, at the Grand Hyatt Dubai hotel.

Bearing the theme "Knowledge ... Present and Future", the three-day Summit is held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, as well as under the directives and in the presence of H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of MBRF. The Summit combines popular ministers, executives, and intellectuals to discuss ways to improve the production and dissemination of knowledge.

Speaking at the opening ceremony were His Excellency Jamal bin Huwaireb, Managing Director of MBRF; the guest of honour, H.E. Tony Abbott, Former Prime Minister of Australia; Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations Secretary-General (in an televised message); Sophie de Caen, Deputy Assistant Director and Replacement Regional Director for the Regional Bureau for Arab States at the United Nations Development Program (UNDP); and Turki Aldakhil, General Manager of Al Arabiya Television Network in Dubai.

" The leaders of the United Arab Emirates became realised early the considerable role of knowledge and reading in structure sustainable communities," noted H.E. Jamal bin Huwaireb in his speech, highlighting a few of the UAE Government's knowledge-focused initiatives such as the Year of Reading 2016 and the National Approach for Reading 2026, released by H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and the Arab Reading Challenge, introduced by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

H.E. bin Huwaireb added: "To implement these initiatives, it is imperative that we seriously and proactively prepare for and the future as a basis for decision-making ... This is where the Knowledge Summit 2016 is available in. This year, the Summit presents a revolutionary effort-- the Arab Reading Index-- born out of the considerable joint efforts of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation and the United Nations Advancement Programme. The index is an important device capable of evaluating reading and cultural patterns in the Arab region."

In a televised message, meanwhile, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon admired the initiatives of the United Arab Emirates-- and MBRF, specifically-- in signing up with hands with the United Nations to promote knowledge with such noticeable events as the Knowledge Summit, highlighting its particular value to the youth segment, as knowledge works as a compass to help them employment.

Meanwhile, the UNDP's Sophie de Caen shared her gratitude for the assistance and partnership that the UAE has supplied to UNDP. "This partnership, inspired in part by the searchings for of the UNDP Arab Human being Advancement Information released in 2002 and 2003, has actually now caused a crucial body of joint work," de Caen stated. "This includes the magazine of four major regional analytical reports on critical facets of knowledge and education, as well as the Knowledge4All Internet platform, the Arab Reading Index, and the Arab Reading Index. At UNDP, our view is that continuing to advance on knowledge is of essential significance for the course in advance across the Arab States region."

" Last year world leaders embraced the 2030 Program for Sustainable Growth-- the world's strategy to build a future of tranquility, success, dignity and chance for all," de Caen added. "I want to call your focus on Sustainable Advancement Goal 4 in particular, which stresses that education and knowledge go to the core of lasting development ... Right here in the region, youngsters have a growing number of accessibility to information, yet we know that the high quality of details that individuals have accessibility to is irregular. Knowledge will certainly be the key moving forward to make certain that lots of parts of the region have the ability to restore a strong footing."

The Summit's visitor of honour, Former Australian Prime Minister H.E. Tony Abbott, also spoke at the opening event, where he remarked on Dubai's accomplishments and how much the emirate has come he initially saw in 2010. "Just what was a couple of years ago a sleepy desert outpost has been changed into a marvel of the modern-day world," H.E. noted, adding that Dubai had not been just a success story in terms of construction and development, but that, when compared with the remainder of the region, "Dubai is totally free".

" The contrast between the UAE and several components of the region might not have been a lot more raw," Abbott goes on, calling the UAE an antidote to the suggestion that the Middle East is constantly prone to fundamentalism. "The major driver in this success was the UAE's concentrate on education. I wish your example will certainly be compelling to countries throughout the region. Knowledge occasions similar to this are very important because they build bridges of communication; they show that what binds us is stronger than just what separates us."

For his part, Turki Aldakhil, General Manager of Al Arabiya Television Network in Dubai, talked at the opening event of the annual Knowledge Summit, announcing the results of the Arab Reading Index. "We keep hearing about an absence of reading in the Arab World," Aldakhil kept in mind, "Several took this for sure and started to explore the reasons. They count on statistics that wrongly state that Arabs just check out 6 mins-- a quarter of a page-- each year, or that generally, every 80 Arabs, integrated, read one book. While these researches have actually been previously debunked, MBRF made a decision to execute a new research in the region."

" The poll was meant to canvass 20,000 individuals, however it actually attracted 148,000 respondents from all around the Arab World-- the biggest engagement on the planet," Aladkhil proceeded. "The research provides us insight into the truths of reading in the Arab world, exposing exactly just how much the average Arab citizen reviews, what they read, and in which languages, among other criteria. The Index also revealed that, as opposed to popular belief, Arabs, generally, read 35 hrs a year-- 15 hours within school or job hours and 20 outside of them. Meanwhile, the typical variety of publications read is 16 annually-- including seven within school or job hrs and 9 outside of them."

" What is more," Aladkhil explained, "e-reading goes beyond traditional reading. As far as paper publications go, respondents review scientific publications, novels, specialised publications, papers, and comics, because order. Meanwhile, in e-reading, the study showed that social media sites topped the checklist, complied with by information websites, e-books, and blogs."

The opening session of the annual Knowledge Summit also included the statement of the winners of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Award, which honours individuals who've made outstanding contributions to the circulation and production of knowledge around the world. A spectrum of occasions and workshops will also be arranged on the sidelines of the summit.