Dubai: Social media users, from different media platforms, were honoured for their successes during the Arab Social Media Influencers Award Ceremony on the first day of the summit.
His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, presented awards to those who used social media platforms for important causes benefiting their respective societies or even the world.
The Arab Social Media Influencers Summit, held in the Dubai World Trade Centre Arena Hall, kicked off today, inviting influencers from around the world to share their stories and expertise.
The two-day summit consists of sessions, panel discussions and competitions for people in Dubai to attend as influencers share their knowledge. The Arab Social Media Influencers Award Ceremony featured awards in different categories such as tourism, sports, politics and media, honouring both individuals and entities.
Among the winners was Meera Al Daheri, a 24-year-old Emirati, who won the Blog Award for her Abdullah Al Daheri Blog. Through her blog, Meera wrote about her younger brother diagnosed with Down’s syndrome.
“I wrote about my younger brother, Abdullah, in this blog to influence others and to encourage them to involve their kids or their relatives who also have Down’s Syndrome in different societal activities,” she explained.
In her blog, she wrote about Abdullah’s daily improvements and activities such as going to school or responding to his speech therapy.
“I realised that many people don’t take care of their kids with Down’s syndrome in the sense that they belittle their abilities,” she said. “My goal was to fill my blog with as many success stories about Abdullah to encourage others to do the same and to prove that he can take part in society.”
Meera made it a point to blog in Arabic to raise awareness among Arab societies. Abdullah, her younger brother, currently has an Instagram account, encouraging many parents to create accounts for their kids too.
Also an Instagram user, Ganem Al Muftah, a 12-year-old Qatari with Caudal Regression Syndrome (CRS), was presented with the Youth Award with more than 630,000 followers. Through his account, Al Muftah gives hope to the world by sharing his pictures on daring adventures despite his physical disability.
“My goal through my Instagram account is to promote and spread optimism and hope around the world,” he said.
Similarly, Omar Samra, Adventurer, CEO and Founder of Wild Guanabana and winner of the Travel Award from Egypt, uses social media platforms to send a message across to the world.
“Social media is integral to how we promote ourselves and market our products. It also raises awareness about ethical travel and adventure travel in the region, and also on my personal expeditions,” he said.
Samra made an effort to upload his photos and adventures on social media to engage his audience to enable them to experience the journey with him. “The message that I am trying to focus on is that with hard work and perseverance, anyone can achieve anything they set their minds on,” he said. Other individuals, and public, private and government entities were awarded in the ceremony for their social media usage. Among the many winners were the Ministy of Foreign Affairs which won the Government Entity Award, National Geographic Abu Dhabi won the environmental award and Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing won the Tourism Award for #MyDubai.
Maria Botros is a trainee at Gulf News
