Battling it out with more than three million participants from around the Arab world, seven-year-old Mohammad Farah from Algeria was announced as the champion of the Arab Reading Challenge.
Talaih Al Amal high school in Palestine, meanwhile, bagged the $1-million prize for the school with the best reading initiatives in the region.
The announcement was made at the closing award ceremony at the Dubai Opera House, where His Highness Shaikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai presented the winners with their awards.
Farah received a $150,000 reward, of which $100,000 will be given in the form of a university scholarship and $50,000 in the form of a cash reward to his family for their encouragement.
The event was also attended by several VIP guests, government officials and participants from the Arab region.Cut down to 18 finalists on October 21 and 22 during a gathering at Dubai School, the competition named its final three finalists during the award ceremony.
Shaikh Mohammad launched the Arab Reading Challenge in September 2015, with the aim to encourage a million students in the Arab world to read 50 million books.
The award ceremony was held at the Dubai Opera on Monday, where the three finalists out of the 18, chosen during Saturday and Sunday’s trial, took part in the finals.
7-year old Mohammed Abdullah Farah from Algeria wins the @ArabReading Challenge pic.twitter.com/0QnOBaaC0E
— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) October 24, 2016
