Dubai: As the Month of Reading is drawing near, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, took to Instagram to remind people on the importance of reading.
“Reading is nourishment for the soul and mind,” said Sheikh Mohammed in a video shared on his official Instagram page.
The Dubai Media Office posted the video on its twitter page with a caption that reads: “This is about the importance of reading in supporting the development and prosperity of nations. The video comes as part of #FlashesOfLeadership Hashtag that he recently launched on his Instagram account where he shares part of his personal and professional experience and vision.
“The first word revealed in the Holy Quran was “Read”. History teaches us that civilisations rise and nations prosper through knowledge. For me, when a day passes without learning anything new, I consider it a wasted day of my life,” Sheikh Mohammed said in the video.
Earlier, the UAE had declared March as the Month of Reading in 2016 with nation-wide activities that aimed to spark the passion for knowledge across all society. To further encourage people to read, Sheikh Mohammed launched the Arab Reading Challenge in 2015. Representing the largest pan-Arab reading project, the challenge aims to promote a sustainable reading model through an integrated system of student-supervisor follow-ups and support, as well as monetary incentives for students, supervisors and schools. The project hopes to bring about a cultural renaissance in the Arab world by encouraging students to read and continuously expand their knowledge.
