Dubai: Five photographers flown in from different countries have been honoured by the UAE for their masterpieces that reflected Sustainable Development Goals.
The General Secretariat of the National Committees on Sustainable Development Goals, in collaboration with the Hamdan bin Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum International Photography Award (HIPA), awarded the winners of the UAE SDG Photography Award on Wednesday evening.
The five winners received a total of US$25,000 distributed among the five main themes of the competition-- People, Earth, Prosperity, Peace, and Partnerships.
More than 4,100 participants from 132 countries submitted over 7,000 photos to win the Award in Less than 66 Days.
The ceremony at the Dubai Frame was attended by Dr. Thani bin Ahmad Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment and Chairman of the Global Council on Sustainable Development Goal 13, Mariam Bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Al Muhairi, Minister of State for Food Security. Dr. Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, Director-General of the Smart Dubai Office and Chairwoman of Global Council on Sustainable Development Goal 11, Engineer Dawood Al Hajri, Director-General of Dubai Municipality, Ali Khalifa Bin Thalith, Secretary-General of HIPA, Abdulla Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority and Vice Chairman of the National Committee on Sustainable Development Goals, Dr. Dina Assaf, United Nations Resident Coordinator to the UAE.
Al Hashimy, addressed the importance of raising awareness on sustainable development.
“Today, we are marking the participation of more than 4,000 photographers from 132 countries around the world taking part in a competition that focuses on spreading global awareness on the importance of the SDGs through photographers’ creative lenses,” she said. “Global participation is proof that SDG awareness should be based not only on the efforts of governments, but also on the diverse contributions of societies through art, music, photography, and other arts.”
She added that that National Committees on Sustainable Development Goals, are delighted the award supported UAE’s role as a global contributor to implementing and raising awareness on the sustainability goals. “Not only at the local level but also on an international scale.”
The ceremony was also attended by several senior officials, members of the National Committee on Sustainable Development Goals, members of the Youth Advisory Board for SDGs, along with guests interested in sustainable development and photography.
Winners
Gobo Kao (China)- Peace Theme Award.
Turan Topalar (Turkey)- Human Theme Award.
Danilo Victorian Junior (Philippines)- Prosperity Theme Award.
Rakesh Bolaba (India)- Earth Theme Award.
Hussein Mohamed Ali (Egypt)- Partnerships Theme Award
Emirati photographers Suleiman Eid Al Hammadi, Mohammed Abdullah Mohammed and Ali Ahmed Al Ali were praised for their participation.
