The Cultural Programs and Heritage Festivals Committee Abu Dhabi is intensifying its preparations for the tour of the 7th season jury of the Millions Poet programme in a number of Gulf and Arab countries. The tour will kick off from Jordan, with the first leg running from the 1st to the 2nd of November, 2015.

In this regard, a meeting was held at the headquarters of the Baynounah TV satellite channel, which operates under the supervision of the Committee. The meeting discussed all the required preparations for the tour and was attended by: Mr. Issa Seif Al Mazrouei, Managing Director at the Channel, Mr. Abdullah Butti Al Qubaisi, Director of Projects Management at the Cultural Programs and Heritage Festivals Committee, Mr. Sultan Al Amimi, Director of the Poetry Academy, a number of the jury members, Ms. Nashwa Al Ruwaini, CEO of Pyramedia production company, and Mr. Abdullah al Musabi, Managing Director and General Coordinator of the Million's Poet programme.

The Jury for the new season will interview the candidates at the Holiday Inn Amman. The members of the jury include: Mr. Sultan Al Amimi, Dr. Ghassan Al Hassan, and Poet Hamad Al Said. The tour will also feature the Advisory Committee which involves Mr. Badr Saffuq and Mr. Turki Al Merrikhi.

The Cultural Programs and Heritage Festivals Committee Abu Dhabi has previously announced that registration for participation in the Millions Poet TV competition, in its 7th season (2015-2016), would run until the 31st of October 2015.

Earlier last year, the Poetry Academy announced the opening of registration for the 7th season, immediately after the finale in May 2014. The 6th season was crowned by the winning of the Emirati poet, Saif Salem Al Mansouri, who obtained the Poetry Bayraq and the title of the Millions Poet.

Over the previous months, the Academy has received thousands of applications for participation in the new season. The Millions Poet is organised every two years alternately with the Prince of Poets competition for eloquent poetry, which concluded its 6th season in May 2015.

Priority at the Jury interviews will go for those who registered first. It is worth noting that whoever wishes to participate in the competition should submit a Nabati poem that respects both meter and rhyme. Poems should not exceed a 20-verse length, or be less than a 10-verse length. The submitted poems should be nicely-reviewed by the poet himself and sent in a printed form. All handwritten poems will not be accepted.

All the candidates are required to send a photograph (with a white background), a copy of a valid passport (with a validity of no less than 12 months), and the poem presented by the poet for participation in the competition, and this via e-mail to: Mp7@tcaabudhabi.ae

Mr. Sultan Al Amimi, Director of the Poetry Academy noted that the conditions for participation and admission depend on strict aesthetic and technical standards of Nabati poetry, especially with regard to the terms of meter, rhyme, poetic language, and the method adopted in dealing with the poetic purpose and the technical construction of poems, images and structures. According to the terms and conditions, only poets who are not under 18 years old and not over 45 years old would be accepted.

Mr. Issa Seif Al Mazrouei, Member of the Supervisory Committee and Managing Director at the Baynounah TV channel, the official media partner of the Millions Poet, said, Since the launch of the 1st season in 2007, the Millions Poet has revealed about 290 poetry talents, and introduced them to the public. The credit for this great achievement goes to the Emirate of Abu Dhabi for changing the map of Nabati poetry, and reproducing, rearranging and restoring interest in the poetry scene. The efforts of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi serve the main objective of the Millions Poet, which seeks to preserve and promote the heritage of the Nabati poetry in the Arab region.

The programme also works towards the promotion and the consolidation of the position of this form of poetry at the forefront of Arab literature. The Millions Poet stands for a unique platform to discover and reveal Emirati, Gulf and Arab talents that have not had the chance yet to appear in the media. The programme presents these talents appropriately from the cultural hub, Abu Dhabi, he added.

Mr. Abdullah Butti Al Qubaisi, Director of Projects Management at the Committee, said all the initiatives and programmes that are implemented by the Cultural Programs and Heritage Festivals Committee do make part of Abu Dhabis strategy to raise the status of poetry, literature, culture and heritage. The Committee believes in the merit of the preservation of the national identity, culture and heritage a heritage that carries a civilisational and humane message to the rest of the peoples of the world.

With the active involvement of experts in the fields of literature, poetry and art, the Committee organises and promotes different events and activities. Out of its belief in the value of literature, with its various forms and arts, as an important pillar of culture and identity in the UAE, the Committee continues to intensify its efforts.

With Emirati poet, Saif Salem Al Mansouri, winning the Million's Poet title for the 6th season, the UAE has kept the poetry Bayraq for a second time in a row. The winner of the title for the 5th season was Emirati poet, Rashid Ahmed Al Rumaithi.

Since the launch of the 1st season (2006-2007), the TV programme has effectively attracted a large audience and preserved its distinguished position in the eyes of the lovers of Nabati poetry. With each new edition, millions of eager viewers from the Arab region tune in to follow the exciting competitions on Abu Dhabi TV and Baynounah TV.

The Million's Poet offers the participants prizes and incentive rewards. The total amount of AED 15 million goes to the winners of the top five positions. The holder of the first position, winner of the Millions Poet title, and Bayraq-bearer gets AED 5 million. AED 4 million go for the winner of the second position, AED 3 million for third, AED 2 million for fourth, and AED 1 million for fifth.