Grand Egyptian Museum hosts Grand Cultural Ceremony celebrating National Reading Programme Achievements

"Scientific Research Investment" of the UAE announced the development of an advanced mechanism to enhance reading skills among university and school students and teachers in Egypt, during a grand cultural ceremony inside the Grand Egyptian Museum to honor elite readers from among Egyptian students, within the framework of the National Reading Programme.

The National Reading Programme in Egypt has achieved impactful levels and results over the past years, and has contributed to guiding Egypt's children and youth to continue functional, creative, and critical reading, in cooperation with a number of Egyptian government institutions, most notably the Ministries of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Education, Culture, Youth and Sports, and Al-Azhar Al-Sharif.

The event was attended by prominent officials, public figures, knowledge makers, and those interested in cultural, educational, pedagogical, and media affairs, amid praise for the level of the honorees from Egyptian schools and universities.

Al Shamsi, Head of Scientific Research Investment, said during the ceremony: "The Egyptian sky has embraced, across times and eras, those who contemplated it thoughtfully and rationally, looking with their insight, realizing that its narrative is not like all other narratives, and also understanding that it will certainly return with strength to shine brightly."

The Head of Scientific Research Investment added in her speech: "Today, we take pride that together leaders, families, students, and work teams we have achieved this accomplishment together, and together we will continue to work until every boy and girl, every young woman and young man, become cohesive components of society, all of us reading without stopping."

Professor Dr. Mustafa Rifaat, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Universities, praised the role of the National Reading Programme in establishing a culture of conscious, creative, and critical reading in the minds of students, university youth, and teachers, so that they become more capable of acquiring knowledge, employing it, and producing new knowledge from it.

The list of honorees included 11 students from Egyptian universities, 5 teachers, and 16 students from various schools, after competing with millions of participants from all governorates and universities of Egypt.

Dr. Salama Dawood, President of Al-Azhar University, affirmed in his speech at the ceremony that reading is the locomotive of progress, and what the winning students read in the National Reading Programme helps them produce knowledge at the beginning of their journey.

Dr. Iman Hassan, Head of the Central Administration for Student Activities at the Ministry of Education and Technical Education and General Coordinator of the National Reading Programme at the Ministry, said: "Today, as we honor the winners, we are not only celebrating the names themselves, but the highest meaning they carried: reading and knowledge are the truest path to building a new civilization that draws inspiration from the glorious past and opens the doors to a promising future."

The ceremony this year witnessed the announcement of the launch of the fifth season of the programme and the launch of the National Programme's website in its new look, in addition to the launch of many ambitious cultural and reading initiatives.

It is worth noting that "Scientific Research Investment" supports and chairs a group of prestigious educational and cultural programmes and initiatives in several countries, most notably The School of Research Science in the United Arab Emirates, the National Reading Programme in Egypt and Morocco, the Early Reading Programme, and "National Libraries... The Second Home for the Egyptian Family," which reflects its continuous commitment to promoting culture and knowledge.