UAE President pays tribute to former US President Jimmy Carter, shares historic picture with Sheikh Zayed

Abu Dhabi: UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Monday paid rich tributes to former US President and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Jimmy Carter who passed away at the age of 100 on Sunday.

Offering his condolences, the President shared a heartwarming picture of Carter with the UAE’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, on his X account. Sheikh Mohamed wrote: “I extend my sincere condolences to the family of former US President Jimmy Carter, who was a good friend of the UAE.”

He recalled how Carter and his father had contributed to disease eradication efforts. “Together with the late Sheikh Zayed, he laid the foundations for disease eradication efforts that continue to make a meaningful impact today. May he rest in peace.”

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According to the UAE Embassy in the US, it was during their historic meeting in July 1990 that Carter and Sheikh Zayed formed an alliance to eradicate Guinea-worm disease.

The Carter Centre launched the Guinea Worm Eradication Programme (GWEP) in 1986 to help countries with endemic dracunculiasis (also known as Guinea-worm disease) to reach the goal of eliminating the crippling parasitic disease.

80 million beneficiaries

“Since then, The Carter Center-UAE Guinea worm eradication campaign has helped avert at least 80 million cases of this devastating disease among the world’s marginalised and most neglected people,” the mission had stated while celebrating 50 years of UAE-US ties earlier this year.

The Embassy had also shared a video of Jason Carter, grandson of Jimmy Carter and chair of The Carter Center Board of Trustees, in which he spoke about the decades-long relationship that helped reach the last mile in eradication alongside partners like Reaching the Last Mile (RLM) Global Health.

Speaking about the friendship between Sheikh Zayed and his grandfather, Jason Carter said they shared a lot of the same values about people and community. “They both also understood, I believe that the power of people that who, on the outside, are in rural or poor communities, have the ability to make great change in their lives. The power of those communities to make a difference in the world is really the driving force behind the work that the Carter Centre, the UAE and the Al Nahyan family have done together,” he said in the video.

Decades-long commitment

On Monday, RLM, a portfolio of global health programmes funded by the philanthropy of Sheikh Mohamed, also paid tributes to Carter.

“We join the world today in mourning the passing of President Jimmy Carter. Throughout his life, President Carter worked tirelessly for a better and fairer world, and for the rights of the most vulnerable. His work through The Carter Center has bettered countless lives, including by bringing Guinea worm disease to the cusp of elimination. We are privileged to have partnered with him in this goal. We send our deepest condolences to the Carter family. His legacy as a statesman, humanitarian and peacemaker will always be remembered,” the organisation stated on Instagram.

According to RLM, Sheikh Zayed had made a personal donation of $5.77 million to The Carter Center’s efforts. “Sheikh Zayed’s donation began a decades-long commitment by the UAE’s ruling family to disease eradication. Since 2012, the ruling family has donated an additional US$ 15 Million to The Carter Center’s Guinea Worm Disease Eradication Program,” said its website.

First Zayed Prize winner

Jimmy Carter was also the first winner of the prestigious Zayed International Prize for Environment which eventually became known as the Zayed Prize. Founded by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the Zayed Prize was awarded to Carter in 2001 for his global leadership in environment and sustainable development.

While honouring him with $500,000 for his visionary leadership and dedication to humanity, the jury remarked that his Global 2000 initiative highlighted globalisation’s challenges, particularly for developing nations facing poverty, disease, and instability—key drivers of environmental degradation noted at the 1992 Rio Summit.

Carter’s work in peace, poverty alleviation, and eradicating Guinea worm disease earned global respect, significantly advancing environmental protection in developing countries. His efforts upheld human dignity, health, and sustainable development in peaceful conditions. Recognised for his integrity and foresight, Carter embodied the values of the Zayed International Prize for the Environment, promoting stability and prosperity worldwide, it was pointed out.