Dubai: Egyptian President honours Global Best M-Gov Award winners at WGS 2023

In the presence of The UAE President, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, honoured the winners of the Global Best M-Gov Award 2023 as part of the World Government Summit (WGS) 2023, which is being held in Dubai from February 13-15.

The ceremony was witnessed by Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah. In its eighth edition, the 2023 Global Best M-Gov Award recognised the efforts of students from public and private universities worldwide. The award aims to foster the critical role that universities and youth play in finding innovative solutions to local and global challenges.

President El-Sisi presented the Golden Award to the ‘BlockBill’ team from India, the Silver Award to the ‘Don’t Waste’ team from Uzbekistan, and the Bronze Award to the ‘Farmit’ team from Serbia.

A team from the Indian Institute of Technology in Andheri, Mumbai, created the BlockBill app. It leverages the benefits of blockchain technology to enable real-time recording of transactions between retailers and their customers. The Don’t Waste app, developed by a team from INHA University in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, promotes the responsible disposal of surplus food. The Farmit app, created by a team from the University of Belgrade in Serbia, aims to empower local farmers by providing consumers with a direct and transparent view of the agricultural supply chain from farm to fork.

Also present during the awards ceremony were Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai; Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi, Crown Prince of Fujairah; and several Sheikhs, ministers and senior officials.

The Global Best M-Gov Award recognises innovative solutions that use scalable, high-tech approaches to bring about a significant impact on various communities. Over 1,000 teams from 62 countries participated in this year’s competition. The entries were evaluated by a panel of international experts, who narrowed down the pool to 45 finalists and, ultimately, selected the top three winners.

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