UAE's success 'can be achieved in other states'

Dubai: The Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation became a reality when it received $10 billion (Dh36.7 million) from His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

With clear goals to facilitate learning in the Arab world, the foundation was announced in May 2007 at the World Economic Forum in Jordan.

At the time of the launch, Shaikh Mohammad said: "Our region needs at this moment 15 million job opportunities, and our Arab world will need in the next 20 years 74 to 85 million job opportunities."

The Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation is a development foundation with a clear vision and a definite goal. It is to participate in the development of the state of knowledge in the Arab and Islamic worlds.

"I believe that the success we have achieved in the UAE can be achieved in other states as well, and that the spread of success is healthy," said Shaikh Mohammad at the Knowledge Conference.

Freedom of thought

"The Foundation believes that knowledge and freedom are two sides of the same coin. It believes that building communities of knowledge requires the development of policies, laws and measures necessary to ensure the freedom of thought, research, publication, in addition to providing protection for intellectuals, researchers, and inventors, while securing the independence of universities, and research centres."