Abu Dhabi: President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was born on March 11, 1961, the third son of the UAE’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He received his formal education in the UAE and England and graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1979.
He was appointed Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi on November 03, 2004 and became Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces in January 2005.
In the Armed Forces
He held various positions and has diverse experiences from that of Officer in the Amiri Guard and Pilot in the UAE Air Force. In January 1993, he was appointed Chief-of-Staff of the UAE Armed Forces and held the rank of Lieutenant General from January 24, 1994 until January 2005, when he was promoted to the rank of General. He was appointed Deputy Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi on November 30, 2003. On January 6, 2004, he became the Deputy Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council; and chairman on December 9 the same year.
Sheikh Mohamed developed the UAE Armed Forces in terms of strategic planning, training, organisational structure and promoting defence capabilities. His direct guidance and leadership led the UAE Armed Forces to become a leading institution that is widely admired by many international military organisations. He has visited the UAE peacekeeping troops in Kuwait and Kosovo.
With his military training, Sheikh Mohamed's experience covers commanding armoured units, Gazelle helicopter squadron, the Air School and the Air College. He has been Commander of the UAE Air Forces and Air Defence, Deputy Chief-of-Staff of the UAE Armed Forces, and Chief-of-Staff of the UAE Armed Forces.
Sheikh Mohamed was the principal advisor on security issues to the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan in addition to his military responsibilities, as well as the President of the ECSSR and an active member of the Supreme Petroleum Council, which has policy jurisdiction over oil and energy issues. On top of that, he is also Head of the Abu Dhabi Council for Economic Development (ADCED), which is the premier economic planning institution in the UAE.
At the helm
He is also the Head of Mubadala Development which, since its establishment in 2002, represents the main investment vehicle for Abu Dhabi to achieve sustainable social and economic benefits for the Emirate. General Sheikh Mohamed is also the Head of the UAE Offsets Group. In addition, He is the Head of the Abu Dhabi Education Council which was set up in September 2005 to develop education and vocational training. He known for his unwavering commitment to enhance educational standards in Abu Dhabi and raise them to be on par with the best international standards.
Sheikh Mohamed has also received numerous citations and decorations from the UAE, the Kingdom of Bahrain, Qatar, the Kingdom of Morocco, Pakistan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy.
Interests
Sheikh Mohamed maintains a deep interest in poetry. He regularly lends support to poetry competitions and other events, allowing them to be held under his patronage and attending in person as many of them as he can. In addition, he consistently demonstrates commitment to cultural, artistic, literary and innovation-based initiatives in the community.
Shaikh Mohamed has made many great contributions in many fields that serve the local and the residents of the United Arab Emirates. One of his responsibilities is receiving the UAE citizens on his palace and listening personally to their needs, complaints and problems. Moreover, he takes immediate action to solve the citizen’s issues in order to provide all the required essentials to maintain luxury, comfort and reassurance to all Emirati people.
Shaikh Mohammad is married and is the father of nine children.
Source: Gulf News Archives; compiled by Abdul Kareem, Head of Archive
