Month: May 2023

SYRIAN Coder Mahmoud Shahoud Wins $1 million in ‘One Million Arab Coders’ challenge in Dubai

Five other coders win $50,000 each in awards presented by Dubai Crown Prince for top apps.

A Syrian coder on Wednesday won $1 million (around Dh3.67 million) in the ‘One Million Arab Coders’ contest during an award ceremony in Dubai facilitated by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of The Executive Council and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Dubai Future Foundation.

Six software projects developed by Arab youth from around the world competed for the grand prize, thanks to the programming skills they acquired during their participation in the initiative’s courses.

On Wednesday, during the closing ceremony held at the Museum of the Future in Dubai, Sheikh Hamdan presented the awards to winners, with Mahmoud Shahoud, a Syrian coder who lives in Turkey, taking home the $1 million top prize.

Sheikh Hamdan tweeted: “Today, we honoured the winners of the ‘One Million Arab Coders’ Challenge, the UAE’s initiative to nurture the development of technology skills among Arab youth. 1.85 million Arab participants from 80 countries took part in the initiative along with 3,600 certified trainers.”

He added: “The Challenge opens fresh opportunities for Arab youth and offers a new path for them to achieve their dreams… Congratulations.”

Sheikh Hamdan added: “The ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative provided the opportunity for one million Arabs to enter the digital world. It fulfilled the dreams of tens of thousands of Arab programmers from all over the world. Its outcomes and successes will be the basis for many upcoming Arab achievements in the world of technology and coding. One Million Arab Coders’ has paved the way for Arab youth to broaden their horizons and sparked their innovation and creativity in the field of advanced technology.”

He added that the ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative, which was launched in 2017 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has succeeded in becoming a gateway for many Arab youth to use their programming skills to realise their dreams and aspirations.

“We look forward to our Arab coders continuing their pioneering innovations and expanding their achievements. We expect their names and future accomplishments to light up the sky worldwide.

“His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s vision for the region’s future is based on investing in the development of the Arab people. The language of programming is one of the pillars of the knowledge economy and a major bridge to a future in which those who possess scientific excellence will have the upper hand,” Sheikh Hamdan concluded.

Shahoud was adjudged winner for his ‘Habit360’ app that helps users create and maintain good habits, allowing them to achieve long-term goals. Shahoud said half of the prize winning will go towards helping Syrian refugees. The rest will be invested in Dubai as Shahoud plans to shift his base to the emirate and start his own business.

Sahoud is a software engineer from Syria who developed Habit360 that helps people build new habits, track their progress and stay motivated. The application has served more than 200,000 users from around the world.

Beside Shahoud, there were five other winners announced on Wednesday.

About the initiative

The ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative is supervised by the Dubai Future Foundation and organised under the umbrella of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives.

The closing ceremony held at Dubai’s Museum of the Future on Wednesday was to honour the best Arab talents in coding, and highlight best coding projects developed by graduates of the initiative to serve their communities and create a better future for humanity.

A total of $1.35 million was given away in prizes during the ceremony.

Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Managing Director of the Dubai Future Foundation, said: “The ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative embodies the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum [Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai] , to provide new opportunities for Arab youth, empowering their contributions to the advancement of technologies globally, and to put a clear Arab footprint in the future of humanity.”

Aimed at youth

He said the initiative aimed mainly at empowering Arab youth around the world with the tools of the future, and providing them with the opportunity to gain new experiences and skills that would help them turn their dreams into successful projects that benefit their societies and have a positive impact on their lives.

“The initiative was a glimmer of hope for Arab youth around the globe that success is not bound by place, age, or obstacles. Rather, success requires insistence on acquiring the experiences and skills that will be needed in the future,” Al Gergawi said.

He pointed out that the initiative was a cornerstone for countless success stories where coding helped create a positive impact on the future of humanity, and spread hope in the Arab region.

Al Gergawi stressed the importance of the initiative’s role in encouraging Arab coders to innovate and start developing software projects that not only meet the needs of their societies, but also foresee and adapt to its future requirements and changes, pointing to the initiative’s success in developing a leading global experience to teach coding skills in an effective manner, which was adopted in Jordan and Uzbekistan.

Saeed Mohammad Al Gergawi, Director, Dubai Future Academy, said: “We have 400 million Arabs and that is a lot of talent. Our criteria is that they had to be impactful, ready to be implemented and creative.”

Other winners

In addition to the grand prize for the ‘One Million Arab Coders’ challenge, the five best projects will receive prizes of $50,000 each, and four of the best trainers participating in the initiative will be honoured with prizes of $25,000 each. The finalists were chosen by a specialised jury that comprises many experts in the fields of entrepreneurship and future technologies.

Egyptian–Canadian Andrew Makram won $50,000 for his app called ‘Najeeb’, a platform for exams, tests and quizzes. “It is a cross-platform tool for teachers and educators to create and share paperless quizzes online. What the app does is that it allows students to access the quiz remotely, submit answers and receive the result instantly. Realtime submitted data are available to educators for revision and evaluation purposes,” he said.

Makram added that it took him a month to develop the app and it is in prototype form.

Egyptian entrepreuner Eman Magdy was another winner who has developed an app for the benefit of working women in Egypt. She won a prize for her initiative to ease the burden of working women in Egypt.

“The app is called 3lfraza. It is a platform to support homestay women in Egypt. Basically homestay women help working women to prepare vegetable and meat cuts and meals. Currently 9,000 women are registered from Egypt. We hope more women for all over the world use this to help one another. The app supports small vendors, helping busy mums in their day to day lives,” she said.

Meanwhile Mohamed ElEskandarany developed an app called ‘Muaahal’ to help youth to develop new skills. “It is a platform that aims to qualify Arab youth and prepare them well in the fields of their choice to work in suitable jobs or to start their own business. In addition, helping companies to find qualified employees, and to solve the problem of unemployment and increase the productivity of youth,” he said.

Another winner, Ammar Salim, won in the initiative for his app called Qeraaty Alnateqa which helps in speaking-reading program for the deaf and mute. “It is a speaking program to teach reading and writing to deaf and mute children. With a new sign language system and tool for converting the sign of only two fingers from the fingers of the hand to spoken letters and words,” said Salim.

Last but not the least, Hasan Mohamed won the prize for his ‘Chat translation app’.

“It is a mobile app that provides a textual and vocal chat for people of different languages in different places around the world ,to convert people’s speech in different languages into written texts, translate texts from one language to another, and convert translated texts into spoken speech again,” said Mohamed.

Software expertise

Sheikh Mohammed launched the ‘One Million Arab Coders’ challenge in July 2021 with the aim of recognising and honouring the achievements of Arab talents in the field of programming and creating an opportunity for participants in the initiative to showcase their innovative projects, developed using programming skills and the experience gained during their participation.

The challenge saw a total of 257 projects submitted by the initiative’s graduates from 50 different countries in various sectors related to programming, technology and entrepreneurship in the areas of website and mobile application development. In order to qualify for the final stage and compete for the million-dollar prize, the nominees were selected according to a set of main criteria, including the project idea, the innovation quality, and ease of use.

Jury

The jury for the final round included Fadi Ghandour, Chairman of Wamda Capital; Bashar Kilani, Managing Director of Accenture Middle East; Dr. Abdul Latif Al Shamsi, Director of the Higher Colleges of Technology; and Ronaldo Mouchawar, Vice President of Amazon Middle East.

Supervised by the Dubai Future Foundation, the ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative has seen 1,058,265 people from around the world participate virtually in millions of hours of study and work, as well as tens of thousands of training workshops. Since its launch, 1,500 “Nano Degree” certificates have been awarded to distinguished participants and promising talents. The initiative featured more than 3,600 certified trainers from around the world.

Serving humanity

Led by the Dubai Future Foundation (DFF) and organised under the umbrella of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI), ‘One Million Arab Coders’ is the largest initiative of its kind in the world. The initiative aims to teach one million young people from the Arab world to code and enable them to launch exceptional projects and programmes that serve Arab societies, drawing on the science and skills gained from their training.

The initiative embodies Sheikh Mohammed’s vision to empower Arab youth with the tools of the future to serve humanity and build a brighter future for the region. The challenge forms part of the UAE’s continuous efforts make a positive impact on the world.

Partnerships

The ‘One Million Arab Coders’ initiative is supported by the Hussein Sajwani – DAMAC Foundation, which focuses on supporting learning opportunities and developing skills to stimulate profitable social and economic participation, and empowering societies in the Arab world to achieve a sustainable future. The Udacity digital learning platform also supported the initiative by offering educational content and training in necessary skills for future jobs. The list of partners of the initiative also included many international technology companies, including Microsoft, Facebook, Oracle, Careem and others.

The initiative also provides the world with a pioneering model for promoting the development of programming skills. It was adopted in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, which launched the ‘One Million Jordanian Coders’ initiative in May 2019. The initiative was introduced with the aim of making Jordan a world leader in the field of programming. The ‘One Million Uzbek Coders’ initiative, launched through a partnership between the governments of the UAE and the Republic of Uzbekistan, was announced in November 2019, with the aim of providing Uzbek youth with an opportunity to acquire skills in programming, artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, to contribute to the development of innovative technology-based solutions and services.

source/content: gulfnews.com (headline edited)

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Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (centre) with the winners / Image Credit: Supplied

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SYRIA /EGYPT

SAUDI ARABIA: Dr. Jalees Razavi Wins Prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award from American College of Occupational & Environmental Medicine’ USA. History Made by being the First Physician from Saudi Arabia and First Physician from Arab World to be Honoured

  • Dr. Jalees Razavi is first physician from Kingdom, Arab world to be honored
  • Prize presented by American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

A Saudi doctor has been presented with the prestigious Lifetime Achievement in OEM Award by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

Dr. Jalees Razavi is the first Saudi, and Arab, to have been honored with the prize and also the first person from outside North America.

The award, which was created in 1938 by William S. Knudsen, then president of General Motors, recognizes doctors who have made a distinguished contribution to occupational and environmental medicine.

“Never in my wildest dream did I think that I would ever be nominated, let alone win it, Razavi told Arab News.

“I Googled the award and was speechless, as the luminaries who have won this award in the past consist of the who’s who of the specialty, such as C. Everett Koop, the 13th surgeon general of the US, and the father of modern occupational medicine in Canada, Ernest Mastromatteo in 1987.”

Saudi Arabia has many world-class medical researchers. Many Saudis have already proven to the world that they are hardworking, capable, ethical and goal-oriented professionals. I hope that this award willinspire the next generations ofSaudi professionals to continue to workhardand aim higher.

Dr.Jalees Razavi, Saudi physician

Based in Canada, Razavi has been a pioneer in the field of occupational and environmental medicine in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East, and has chaired many symposiums, conferences and technical workshops.

“I think (receiving the award) is the combination of my active clinical work, unyielding commitment to the health and safety of the workforce and teaching,” he said.

At the award ceremony, Razavi was praised for his work as head of occupational medicine and later as chief of preventive medicine at Saudi Aramco, where he led on a number of environmental health campaigns.

“During my work as the executive medical director for Imperial Oil Ltd., Canada and ExxonMobil I worked on the slogan I introduced: ‘Having a Healthy Career,’” he said.

Razavi said occupational and environmental medicine was the field that dealt with the relationship between work and people’s physical and mental health.

“Without enough physicians, the gap is filled by professionals who will not have the skill sets required to address worker health needs. This ultimately impacts the health of workers and even their safety, depending on their job. I don’t think that there is a global solution, nor is it something that can be solved alone.

“Instead, governments, industries, unions, workers, medical schools, regulatory bodies and others should come together to determine how to arrive at an adequate number of specialists to meet population needs and maintain worker health.”

He also suggested incorporating OEM courses in undergraduate medical education and postgraduate residency training in order to grow interest and awareness in the speciality.

“Over the past 20 or more years, planetary health, global warming, greenhouse effect and climate change became global challenges. The occupational medicine specialists were quick to recognize the need for addressing the environmental medicine need,” Razavi said.

“The postgraduate programs in occupational medicine at the Universities of Toronto, Alberta and Montreal, for example, over the last many years have expanded their training curriculum to include environmental medicine.

“I expanded my practice for heat- and cold-related diseases and injuries, migrant and remote workers heath, and I also consult on disaster responses, because what happens in one corner of the world can impact the rest within hours, such as with COVID-19 or catastrophes such as Fukushima or Chernobyl.”

Different from clinical medicine, OEM evaluates and addresses whether certain illnesses are caused by a specific workplace exposure and evaluates risk, toxicology, injuries management and prevention.

“For example, we may diagnose diabetes in the workplace during routine screening. We don’t actively treat the condition, but assess and manage the impact of the disease on the worker’s health at work, and his or her safety in the workplace,” Razavi said.

He said he was proud to be the first Saudi to win the award.

“Saudi Arabia has many world class medical researchers. Many Saudis have already proven to the world that they are hardworking, capable, ethical and goal-oriented professionals. I hope that this award will inspire the next generations of Saudi professionals to continue to work hard and aim higher.”

source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)

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SAUDI ARABIA

TUNISIA: Phoenix Mecano Elcom Wins Tunisian Kaizen Award

“Phoenix Mecano Elcom,” a Tunisian company specializing in the manufacture and assembly of electromechanical components has just won the Tunisian Kaizen Prize in the “large-Scale Business” category.

The Kaizen prize, awarded at a ceremony in Tunis on Wednesday, is an initiative organized by the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Its aim is to reward Tunisian companies operating in the industrial or industry-related services sector that have distinguished themselves through exemplary implementation of the “Kaizen” approach, a concept that promotes a culture of continuous learning, integration and innovation.

“Phoenix Mecano Elcom had already won the African Kaizen Award last October in Yaoundé, Cameroon.

In the large-scale businesses category, international manufacturing company Asteel Flash and the Arab Society for Pharmaceutical Industries (SAIPH) also won awards.

Plastic packaging company Azur Pack also received an award in the Small and Medium Businesses category.

During the ceremony, the Minister of Industry, Neila Gongi, said that there was potential for improvement through the spread of Kaizen in Tunisia.

For his part, the Resident Representative of the JICA Office in Tunisia, Shunei Ueno, stressed that, more than a year after the end of the “Quality and Productivity Improvement Project” in December 2002, this second edition of the Tunisian Kaizen Awards “testifies to the continuity of the momentum of the dissemination of the Kaizen concept in Tunisia, which was initiated within the framework of this project”.

The Kaizen concept offers a systematic approach to improvement that results in cost reduction, improved quality and productivity, and shorter delivery times, JICA said. In 2006, Tunisia became the first country in Africa where JICA introduced the Kaizen approach.

source/content: africanmanager.com (headline edited)

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TUNISIA

SAUDI ARABIA to Launch Largest Radio Telescope in Middle East

Project to be located at astronomical observatory in Hail’s Mashar National Park.

 The Saudi Amateur Radio Society is preparing to launch the largest radio telescope in the Middle East, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday. 

Construction on the 20-meter diameter device is done and tests will be conducted before it is linked to the radio telescope system developed at universities. 

The radio telescope will be sited at the astronomical observatory in Mashar National Park.

Prince Badr bin Fahd, the president of the association, said the project was in line with Saudi Vision 2030 goals of sustainable development, digital transformation and attracting investments in the fields of technology and innovation.

source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)

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Construction on the 20-meter diameter device is done and tests will be conducted before it is linked to the radio telescope system. (File/AFP)

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SAUDI ARABIA

MAURITANIA’s Precious Chinguetti Manuscripts : Time Capsules

Saif el Islam al Ahmed Mahmoud sat cross-legged on a sheepskin and gingerly turned the pages of an ancient manuscript.

“What would the world be without poetry?” he asked, using cotton gloves to handle the thin paper document , written in an ink concocted from charcoal and gum Arabic.

The manuscript is one of 700 that his family owns—in turn, part of a priceless legacy of knowledge, art and philosophy stored in Chinguetti, a town in the heart of the Mauritanian Sahara.

Across the UNESCO-listed city are 13 privately-owned libraries holding around 6,000 Arabic manuscripts, many dating from the Late Middle Ages.

The documents are a time capsule of human culture and advancement, dwelling on themes ranging from Islam and astronomy to law, mathematics and poetry.

Most of the manuscripts are paper or parchment, although some texts are written on sheepskin.

Chinguetti’s treasure derives from its position stradding a trade route linking the Western shores of the African continent to Mecca, the center of the Muslim world.

It was also historically a route well traveled by pilgrims on the way to the holy city for the annual hajj pilgrimage.

The manuscripts were collected by local families, who have been their custodians for generations.

“We are preserving the memory of the world which once crisscrossed these ancient streets,” said al Ahmed Mahmoud, with a theatrical gesture.

In Chinguetti’s main square, Abdullah Habbot opened the doors of another library, which his family owns.

He said his family acquired its more than 1,400 documents thanks to the travelers who halted in the dusty city.

But the manuscripts are facing a modern threat: climate change is causing flash floods that threaten the old structures housing the documents.

If the librairies collapse, al Ahmed Mahmoud warned, “ancient memories will be erased, and we will all be poorer

source /content: phys.org (headline edited)

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MAURITANIA

KUWAIT: New World Record for Largest Bisht, Breaks Previous World Record. 48 days of hard work pays off

Guinness-accredited arbitrator honours owner of Bisht Al Baghli exhibition.

Guinness Book of Records recognizes Kuwait’s impressive bisht achievement

Kuwait has set a new world record for the largest bisht in the world. The impressive garment, measuring 17 by 16 meters, broke the previous record of 17 by 9 meters held by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported.

The bisht was produced under the supervision of the Al Baghli Exhibition for the Bisht Industry, a well-known establishment in Kuwait famous for its high-quality traditional garments. Its sewing took a total of 48 days, with the team of craftsmen working tirelessly to ensure every detail was perfect.

The achievement has been recognized by the Guinness Book of Records, with Guinness-accredited arbitrator Kenzi Al Dafrawi honouring Riyad Al Baghli, owner of the Bisht Al Baghli exhibition.

A bisht is a long cloak traditionally worn over a thobe or kandura at special occasions or celebrations in Middle Eastern countries.

The garments are typically black, but also come in white and brown, and are made from a light, often sheer, material with gold trimming.

Traditionally, they are worn at times of celebration, for weddings, Eid and significant festivals. Historically, they were a winter garment, reserved for keeping the wearer warm on colder nights.

source/content: gulfnews.com (headline edited)

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The impressive garment measures 17 by 16 meters. / Image Credit: Kuna

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KUWAIT

ARAB AMERICAN: The Ray Hanania Radio Show returns with a series of Arab American exclusive interviews

  • Syrian American Mayor Khairullah says Biden should end ‘racism’ against Muslims and Arabs
  • ‘I don’t think it is fair to make a documentary to show that Cleopatra was Black. This is changing history,’ says Egyptologist Zahi Hawass

The Ray Hanania Radio Show, a weekly program sponsored by Arab News, kicked off its third season on Thursday with an explosive episode last night. It featured as its first guest Syrian American Mayor Mohamed T. Khairullah, who was controversially banned from the White House Eid celebration.

During his appearance on the show, Khairullah slammed President Joe Biden, saying it is his responsibility to end the “racism” and “discrimination” against Muslims and Arabs that is a part of the system.

The Ray Hanania Radio Show, which first aired in October 2020 ahead of the US elections at the time, hosts a wide array of guests tackling crucial topics in the Arab world.

One such topic tackled this season is the recent Netflix docuseries controversy surrounding the casting of Adele James, a Black actress, as Cleopatra, whom historians agree was of Greek origin.

The furor came from Egyptians and other Arabs accusing the producers of the film of appropriating their culture. The Ray Hanania Radio Show thus hosted world-renowned Egyptologist Zahi Hawass who set the facts straight.

“Cleopatra was a Macedonian…I really think that the reason this film is shown now (is) because some people want to say that the origins of Ancient Egypt were Black,” he said on the show, adding, “I don’t think it is fair to make a documentary to show that Cleopatra was Black. This is changing history.”

Continuing with the topic of Arab representation in Hollywood was Arab News’ very own Editor-in-Chief Faisal J. Abbas.

On the show, Abbas cited Arab American writer and academic Jack Shaheen and his book “Reel Bad Arabs,” which says that, out of 1,000 films, Arabs were only presented or portrayed positively in 12 percent of them.

“As Arabs, we should not wait for Hollywood, and we should not wait for people with Orientalist agendas to tell our story. We should be the masters of our own destiny, we should be the masters of our own storytelling,” Abbas said.

“I’ll tell you one more thing before we conclude. Actions speak louder than words.”

The Ray Hanania Radio Show is broadcast live on WNZK AM 690 Radio in Greater Detroit and on WDMV AM 700 in Washington D.C. every Wednesday at 5pm EST / 12am KSA, also available on all Arab News podcast channels.

source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)

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AMERICAN / ARAB AMERICAN / PALESTINIAN HERITAGE

EGYPTIAN Actress May Elghety To Star In Disney Series

May Elghety, the talented Egyptian actress, has announced her upcoming role in Disney’s animated series “Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire”. This sci-fi series, inspired by Africa’s diverse cultures and histories, promises to bring viewers thrilling stories of advanced technology, aliens, spirits, and monsters from a uniquely African perspective.

Elghety, who has won critical acclaim for her performances in several TV series and films, took to Instagram to express her excitement and honor at being part of the project. The 24-year-old actress is currently filming for the British movie “Due Dating,” which is directed by Daniel Pacquette and written by Jade Asha.

Born to renowned TV presenters and writers Mohamed Elghety and Mona Barouma, May Elghety began her acting career as a child artist. Her outstanding performance in the controversial TV series “El-Kaserat” earned her the Best Upcoming Actress award at the Arab Drama Festival in 2013.

Since then, Elghety has starred in several successful productions, including “Clash” in 2016, “Taye’a” in 2018, and “Every Week Has A Friday” in 2020. Her most recent film, “MAMA,” premiered at the Cairo International Film Festival in 2022.

“Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire” is a 10-part anthology that promises to bring together rising animation talents from six African nations. The series features an impressive production team, with Oscar-winning director Peter Ramsey serving as executive producer and Cape Town-based animation house Triggerfish leading the studio. Egyptian director Ahmed Teilab has also joined the writing and directing team for the series.

The show is set to premiere on Disney+ this year and is sure to delight audiences with its captivating storytelling and stunning visuals. “Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire” is yet another feather in the cap of May Elghety, who continues to prove herself as one of the most talented and versatile actresses of her generation.

source/content: abouther.com (headline edited)

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EGYPT

SOMALIA: How ‘Bilan’ an All-Women News Outlet is changing Somalia’s Media Landscape

The dream of becoming a journalist began for Kiin Hasan Fakat when she was just 10 years old. Her family had joined legions of Somalis displaced by war and hunger and since 2007 had been living across the border in northern Kenya, in one of the largest refugee camps in the world.

Each day, Ms. Fakat listened to her uncle’s small radio, which was powered by AA-sized batteries, and tuned to the Voice of America Somali service.

And each day, she became more aware of – and inspired by – the reporting of Asha Ibrahim Aden, a veteran correspondent who spoke with authority and confidence, and whose example showed Ms. Fakat what a Somali newswoman could achieve.

“I used to say, ‘Maybe I can be like this female journalist. I like her reports,’” recalls Ms. Fakat, who was raised in Kenya’s Dadaab Camp but was originally from the southern Somali town of Buale.

Today it is Ms. Fakat who has herself become a role model for Somalia’s aspiring female journalists, as part of the reporting team of the country’s first all-women news outlet, called Bilan, which means “bright and clear” in the Somali language.

With the aim of reporting powerful human stories often overlooked by Somalia’s male-dominated media – from the personal impact of chronic drought and the local ravages of climate change, to living with HIV and issues of addiction and gender-based violence – the six women of Bilan are expanding the practice of journalism in Somalia like never before.

High among their pioneering achievements in a staunchly patriarchal society: Serving as examples of professional excellence to other Somali women.

“A lot of Somali girls who are journalists contact us to join us, and we support them. Everything we write, they say, ‘You did a great job,’” says Ms. Fakat, clad in typical Somali dress, with head-covering and a long shawl.

“We are encouraging our sisters,” says Fathi Mohamed Ahmed, the chief editor of Bilan, interviewed in Mogadishu. “They call us and say, ‘Fathi, can you help me? I want to join Bilan; I want to do this story, how can you help me?’”

Part of their mission is to “bring taboo subjects into the open,” notes Ms. Ahmed’s Bilan biography. “Our sisters, mothers, and grandmothers will talk to us about issues they never dare speak about with men.”

“A game changer”

Launched last April and supported by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Bilan has brought together a half-dozen highly qualified female Somali journalists, each with years of experience writing news or broadcasting on radio stations or local TV.

Jocelyn Mason, the UNDP resident representative in Mogadishu, described the ambitious aims of Bilan at its creation.

“We hope this will be a game changer for the Somali media scene, opening up new opportunities for women journalists and shining a light on new subjects that have been ignored, particularly those that are important for women,” Mr. Mason said at the time.

In interviews conducted in the six months prior to launching Bilan, the UNDP found that Somali women journalists “reported being harassed not just on the streets but even in their own offices.”

“They are often denied training opportunities and promotions, and when a woman does reach a position of authority, she is often ignored while more junior [male] figures get to call the shots,” the UNDP said in a statement. “News coverage reflects this, with a lack of programming on issues that are seen as primarily affecting women, including childcare, domestic abuse, and equal political representation.”

On top of providing stories to local Somali outlets through the broadcast platform of Mogadishu-based Dalson media, Bilan is reaching a global audience by publishing stories in foreign news organizations such as the Guardian and BBC in the United Kingdom and El Pais in Spain.

“Before Bilan, our Somali female journalists were very weak. They were feeling fear for everything, [like] making decisions – they would wait for men, for editors and for the directors,” says Ms. Ahmed.

“But now, after starting this media unit only for female journalists, we have a lot of women who are interested,” she says. Applying for the vacant post of editor were 13 qualified women, which Ms. Ahmed calls an “amazing” number ready to “make decisions in the editor’s room.”

The result is that Bilan stories offer very different fare from what is produced by the country’s other news outlets.

“What is going on in Somali media, they just focus on politics and conflict, nothing else,” says Ms. Ahmed. “But there are so many stories to do on Somali society, especially about Somali people, and what is going on here. We are going to have all those stories.”

Bilan’s journalism sparks action

Bilan reporting has already had an impact. An article last year about the lack of medical facilities for displaced Somalis living in makeshift camps on the outskirts of Mogadishu led to the creation of a small hospital at the site.

One in-depth article in the Guardian last October helped raise an urgent alarm about Somalia’s looming humanitarian crisis and famine. Bilan journalists visiting three different regions of the country warned against repeating the mistakes of 2011, when some 100,000 Somalis died of hunger before there was an official declaration of famine, which ultimately left a total of 260,000 dead.

Finding oft-hidden voices is what Bilan does best. Ms. Fakat says that 80% of her interviews are with women, and Bilan works with civil society activists, especially on issues for women and human rights.

One recent story delved into the challenge faced by HIV-positive Somalis, who are often treated as outcasts, even by their own families. Another television report focused on students at a school with special needs, where the teachers and principal also have special needs, thereby “inspiring the students that they too can have bright, productive futures,” according to Bilan’s description of the report.

Also made for TV, a report showcasing the work and challenges overcome by the only female taxi driver in the northern coastal city of Bosaso.

And Ms. Fakat was in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in November to report from the COP27 climate summit, as part of her ongoing reporting about how climate change is affecting Somalia. On a recent Friday morning, she was on the Lido Beach in Mogadishu, speaking to volunteers who each week collect trash washed up on the popular beach.

“Absolutely, we see some progress,” says Ms. Ahmed, whose ground-breaking example includes continuing to work, even as a mother with two young children. A third child was born in early December, soon after she was promoted to chief editor of Bilan.

“We talk to the people, and this is good for our [work], for our culture,” says Ms. Ahmed. “We talk to the young ladies, we tell them sometimes: ‘Don’t listen [to detractors], go ahead.’”

A grandmother’s approval

But the female journalists of Bilan are not just challenging local newsroom culture rife with harassment and de facto glass ceilings. They sometimes have to convince their own families that they should pursue their dreams to be professional journalists.

With a smile, Ms. Ahmed says she faced resistance from her own grandmother.

“I love journalism, talking to the people, [and] writing something,” she says.

“My grandmother always said, ‘It’s not good for you, stop! Stop, stop, stop! Please don’t do this job,’” she recalls. “I told her, ‘I love this,’ and I hid my work when I started out, for eight months.”

The success so far of Bilan, and Ms. Ahmed’s career, has now changed her grandmother’s mind.

“Now she is OK, she is happy!” she says, beaming. “She is proud of me.”

source/content: csmonitor.com / The Christian Science Monitor / (Scott Petersen) (headline edited)

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Scott Peterson/Getty Images/The Christian Science Monitor

Fathi Mohamed Ahmed, chief editor of Somalia’s first all-women news outlet, Bilan, on a rooftop in Mogadishu, Somalia, Nov. 8, 2022. Her Bilan biography says part of the outlet’s mission is to “bring taboo subjects into the open.”

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SOMALIA

SAUDI ARABIA: Say it with coffee: ‘Heritage Commission’ enters record books

  • Guinness World Records recognizes longest phrase made from coffee beans
  • UNESCO added Saudi Khawlani coffee and the skills and knowledge associated with its cultivation to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list

The Heritage Commission has set a world record for the longest phrase made from coffee beans.

The phrase, “Heritage Commission,” comprised 6,088 Saudi Khawlani beans and was created as part of the commission’s events to mark World Heritage Day.

The creation, whose record length was recognized by Guinness World Records, was displayed at the King Abdulaziz Historical Center in Riyadh, where the commission’s representatives received their official certificate.

Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s largest consumers of coffee and achieving self-sufficiency in its production is a goal of Saudi Vision 2030.

Khawlani is one of the world’s most sought after coffee beans. It has been cultivated in the Jazan region for more than eight centuries and is mentioned many times in old poems and songs from the region.

Last year, UNESCO added Saudi Khawlani coffee and the skills and knowledge associated with its cultivation to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

According to statistics from the 2022 Saudi Coffee Festival, the Jazan region is home to more than 2,000 coffee farms, over 384,000 coffee trees and an annual production of over 900 tons.

source/content: arabnews.com (headline edited)

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The phrase, ‘Heritage Commission,’ comprised of 6,088 Saudi Khawlani beans, was created as part of the commission’s events to mark World Heritage Day. (SPA)

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SAUDI ARABIA