New York: Europe and the Arabs

"The Global Knowledge Index has benefited many countries, universities, and research centers, providing information to decision-makers around the world on a golden platter." This is how Jamal bin Huwaireb, CEO of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation, described one of the most prominent initiatives launched by the Emirati foundation in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme. According to the UN Daily News Bulletin, a copy of which we received on Wednesday morning, Bin Huwaireb spoke to UN News after an event at UN headquarters on the sidelines of the high-level week of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly. He said that the Global Knowledge Index, which was first launched in 2017, "has changed the equation, as we now know exactly why one country has advanced and another has lagged behind, and why one country has begun to advance after lagging behind." This is the power of the index."
Among the major projects that resulted from the "important and significant partnership"—as Bin Huwaireb described it—between the Foundation and the United Nations Development Programme is the "Future Skills Academy," which "is changing the lives of people in the Arab-Islamic region." It provides training courses accredited by the United Nations, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation, and Coursera.
The Foundation's CEO said that 15,000 people are enrolled in the training courses offered by the academy, and 160,000 are on the waiting list. He added, "Our goal is to reach 10 million people by 2030."
He emphasized that this academy "helps young people find jobs to advance themselves to a better position than they are now."
Reading Index
The Digital Knowledge Center is another project that the CEO of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation spoke about. It provides 15 million open and freely available materials, "and more than one million titles (books) that benefit millions of young people, readers, and researchers annually."
He pointed out that the number of visits recorded last year to the Digital Knowledge Center's website was 26 million visits, and it is expected to rise to 70 million this year.
It is noteworthy that 60% of young people who benefit from the Digital Knowledge Center's materials "read science and search for scientific materials." Bin Huwaireb said, "This is something that all decision-makers in the Arab world should pay attention to; Arabs are strongly committed to science and knowledge.
The Foundation has another effective tool for measuring reading levels, the "Arab Reading Index," which it launched in 2016. This was one of the things the Foundation's CEO spoke about, describing it as "the only global index that measures reading." He noted the launch of a second edition of the index and the intention to organize a celebration to mark the 10th anniversary of the first index.
Great Prospects
In this digital sea of ​​knowledge overflowing with knowledge, the Foundation's President said that artificial intelligence, which has become available in everything, "has become an urgent necessity for the Foundation because it opens up great prospects." However, he also warned against the hallucinations of artificial intelligence and its misuse.
He spoke of examples of the Foundation's use of artificial intelligence, including in the Future of Knowledge Foresight Report and the Global Knowledge Index, where it was used for data analysis.
Bin Huwaireb emphasized that "all these bright spots would not have been possible without partnerships," emphasizing that his country believes in partnerships, including the partnership with the United Nations Development Program, as the Foundation is "the only knowledge partner" of the UNDP.
He said, "Working alone is not suitable, and Anyone who wants to work, especially in the field of humanitarian and social work, indicators, summits, and conferences, must find partners in the same field; loyal partners."
Coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the United Nations, the CEO of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation affirmed that "the United Nations, in its 80th year, is also a shining beacon for humanity. God willing, in the next 80 years, the United Nations will be even more luminous and brilliant."