Thursday 28 / November / 2024
ABU DHABI: The UAE, on May 14 , 2022, pledged allegiance to the UAE new president, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as the leader of the nation’s march, amidst a deep belief in his ability to continue to forge ahead with the nation’s illustrious drive of glory, development and construction.
President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is a leader of high calibre, who made a difference at the local level, and achieved remarkable milestones in terms of promoting peace and security regionally and globally, while spreading tolerance and peaceful coexistence between religions and societies, and setting an example to be emulated for humanitarian work.
Born on March 11th, 1961, Sheikh Mohamed is the third son of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, from whom he learned the arts of governance and leadership.
He was educated at schools in Al Ain and Abu Dhabi until the age of 18. In 1979, he joined the prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where he trained in armour, helicopter flying, tactical flying and paratroops. After graduating in April 1979, he returned home to the UAE to join the Officers’ Training Course in Sharjah, another Emirate of the UAE. He has held a number of roles in the UAE military, from that of Officer in the Amiri Guard (the UAE’s elite security force) and Pilot in the UAE Air Force.
Guided by the directives of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and late Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, H.H. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed helped develop the UAE Armed Forces in terms of strategic planning, training, organisational structure and promoting defense capabilities. Sheikh Mohamed’s direct guidance and leadership led the UAE Armed Forces to become a leading institution that is widely admired by many international military organisations.
Among his many interests, His Highness is known for his unwavering commitment to enhance educational standards in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and raise them to be on par with the best international standards. Since Sheikh Mohamed took on the Chairmanship of the Abu Dhabi Education Council, he has worked tirelessly to forge partnerships with prestigious world-class educational institutions and think-tanks, a number of which have subsequently announced plans to either establish a base in or join strategic joint ventures with existing academic establishments.
His Highness is known, and for a long time, to be the directing force behind many initiatives that contributed into supporting and motivating the economic growth and diversity of the emirate of Abu Dhabi, in addition to the construction boom achieved by the emirate at the level of housing for citizens and health and recreational facilities and other fields.
At the federal level, the insightful vision of His Highness and his wise leadership contributed to the renaissance of the modern UAE and the consolidation of its position as an ideal global destination at various levels. The umbrella of security, stability, prosperity, sustainable development and social welfare, established by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is one of the most prominent achievements that reflect his quest to ensure social welfare and economic wellbeing for the UAE citizens Sheikh Mohamed believes that investing in education is the most valuable investment for delivering the future of a nation. Therefore, he has always been determined to provide national educational institutions with the latest state-of-the-art technology and know-how to keep pace with the rapid and multi-faceted changes taking place globally across all fronts.
His Highness’ keynote speech during the World Government Summit in 2015 still resonates, constituting a historic milestone in the UAE, wherein he provided an insightful view of building an economy driven by knowledge and innovation. His words opened the doors of trust about the future of the country, and turned the fear of running out of oil and gas after 50 years into a broader optimism about the future.
Despite his heavy political, legislative and economic responsibilities in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the UAE in general, environmental protection has received great care and attention from His Highness Sheikh Mohamed. He was instrumental in establishing the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi, and has led significant conservation efforts to protect falcons and houbara bustards in the UAE and internationally.
The late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan issued his directives to establish programmes to protect the Arabian Oryx, such as breeding and protecting the wild animals from extinction, whilst reintroducing them back into their natural habitat. Following this, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, launched a similar programme in 2007, which is part of the Abu Dhabi government’s vision to create a regional herd that reflects all programmes for the resettlement of Arabian oryxes in their range countries.
In January 2008, His Highness announced that the Abu Dhabi Government would contribute US$15 billion to Masdar, the global standard-setting alternative and renewable energy initiative based in Abu Dhabi and developer of the world’s first carbon-neutral, zero-waste city.
His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed always seeks to revive the noble human values of religion, and strengthen the spirit of fraternity among human beings, and with an insightful vision, and determination, he succeeded in extending bridges of communication and peace with all leaders and peoples the world, promoting a culture of tolerance to put an end to many of global crises, while shielding the nation and the region against the menacing threats posed by those falsely donning the cloak of Islam while instigating extremism and terrorism around the world.
After the UAE named 2019 as the “Year of Tolerance”, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed received His Holiness Pope Francis, Head of the Catholic Church, and His Eminence the Grand Imam Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Sheikh Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, and the global meeting in the capital Abu Dhabi resulted in the signing of the Human Fraternity Document to be a guide to promoting a culture of mutual respect and dialogue for peaceful coexistence and fraternity among human beings.
Just as Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan spared no effort to spread the values of tolerance, he has been dedicated to serving humanity at large, providing assistance to brotherly and friendly countries, by concluding agreements that carry the meanings of peace, coexistence and cooperation. He also directed the nation’s humanitarian arm, Emirates Red Crescent, along with other charitable societies, to provide a helping hand to peoples afflicted by wars or the effects of disasters and crises.
The great role played by Sheikh Mohamed in strengthening the UAE and the world’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic is undeniable and acclaimed worldwide. His efforts contributed to making the UAE one of the first countries to succeed in overcoming the pandemic and ensure the transition to recovery and normalcy. At the same time, His Highness sent various types of material and in-kind assistance to brotherly and fraternal nations during the pandemic.
In the same context, the initiative of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to eradicate polio in several countries highlights the UAE’s campaign to combat the disease. Since 2011, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed has donated US$247.8 million (AED911.4 million) to humanitarian and charity efforts aimed at providing vaccines and financing polio eradication campaigns most notably in countries targeted by his initiative. He launched the Reaching the Last Mile Fund to raise US$100 million with the aim of eradicating, eliminating, and controlling preventable diseases that hinder the health and economic prospects of the world’s poorest people. He committed US$20 million to the Fund, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged to contribute up to US$20 million.
The aim of this 10-year Fund is to support the elimination of two debilitating and preventable neglected diseases: river blindness, and lymphatic filariasis.
The march of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has been marked by historic positions that were taken for the sake of strengthening cooperation and solidarity with brotherly Arab nations and standing by them. His Highness has never hesitated to support regional stability and address all challenges and threats that affect the security of the region, foremost of which is terrorism and extremist.
Internationally, His Highness always took the initiative of trying to stop global conflicts, quell struggles and defuse disputes, and achieving reconciliation, in quest for world peace and in pursuit of ending bloodsheds, in order to protect human beings and preserve their dignity. -WAM
