Dubai on track to be a leader in smart learning

Dubai is on track to become an internationally-competitive leader in Smart and Contemporary Learning by 2017, with more schools getting electronic tablets, high-speed Internet access and other 21st century learning tools as part of UAE Vision 2021.

This transformation is part of the Dh1-billion Smart Learning Initiative launched by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. By 2017, all K-12 government school classes will be boosted by the programme, benefiting not only students and teachers but also universities and employers, creating a new generation of technologically skilled and creative thinkers who become job seekers and job creators in diverse sectors.

To ‘export’ the lessons of the UAE’s successful model and share the empowerment with ambitious youths across the region, Connec ME Education is expanding its programmes from the UAE to the wider MENA region, including Saudi Arabia, Oman and other markets. This will be achieved in collaboration with internationally recognised partners from the UK, Sweden and France, among others.

Mohammad Mahfouz Shadid, CEO of Connec ME Education, explained: “Over half of the MENA region’s population is aged under 25 years, so by empowering youths, we are actually uplifting the entire region. When you train a youth, you are developing an entire generation. These are not just the leaders of tomorrow but the leaders of today, because we are seeing very young achievers changing the world in business, technology, media, social activism, education and other fields.”

Considering that the Middle East has a high rate of youth unemployment compared to other regions, the advances in Smart Learning are expected to make graduates more self-dependent and more employable. The UAE’s Smart Learning Programme is strongly supported by entities such as the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority, which contributed Dh53 million for the implementation of the first phase of the programme.

Elaborating on the expected benefits from the regional expansion of their operations footprint, Mariam Omran Al Hallami, chief operation officer of Connec ME Education, said: “We don’t just train youths to be job seekers, we also empower them to be job creators and creative thinkers. We partner with the very best organisations in the world because our region must learn from the best to be the best.”

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