New York: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has honoured the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF) as a Knowledge Partner on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s meeting in New York City.
The UNDP sought to honour MBRF to mark 10 years of close partnership, which resulted in several leading projects in the Arab region and the world. The ceremony was attended by MBRF CEO Jamal bin Huwaireb, on behalf of Shaikh Ahmad Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, MBRF Chairman.
Also attending was Achim Steiner, UNDP administrator; Saud Al Shamsi, Deputy Permanent Representative of the UAE to the UN; and Mourad Wahba, UNDP’s Deputy Assistant Administrator and Deputy Regional Director for the Regional Bureau for Arab States.
This marks the first time any Arab organisation has been named Knowledge Partner and is the culmination of the many international initiatives launched by MBRF, most notable of which was the world’s first Global Knowledge Index, whose results were announced at the Knowledge Summit 2017, and covered 131 countries around the world.
Bin Huwaireb underlined the strong partnership that has brought the MBRF together with UNDP for a full decade, stating that the collaboration was “guided by the vision of the UAE’s wise leadership, who has repeatedly proven its commitment to strengthening our partnerships with entities at both the local and international levels, in an effort to build knowledge societies founded on sustainability and investment in human capital”.
The MBRF CEO conveyed Shaikh Ahmad’s gratitude to the UN for honouring the MBRF as a Knowledge Partner to the UNDP, stating this constitutes “a significant addition to our record of achievements, which have had a notable impact on efforts to spread knowledge and develop human capital.”
