Sheikh Mohammed declares October 29 as day to honour coders and programmers

Move aims to attract a new generation of IT professionals to the UAE

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said the move was to encourage young IT professionals to expand the sector in the UAE. Photo: Wam

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, has declared October 29 as a day that honours coders and programmers, Dubai Media Office said on Monday.

It will be a celebration of the role these professionals play in advancing the information technology sector in the UAE.

The initiative also seeks to bolster the national programme for coders.

The programme – announced this year and run in co-operation with companies including Google and Amazon – will attract and train 100,000 programmers and create 1,000 large digital companies within five years.

It will also grant golden visas to 100,000 of the world’s best coders.

“We want to honour the contributions of coders and programmers so that we can encourage future generations of technology professionals to participate in building the future of the UAE,” Sheikh Mohammed said.

The date marks the launch of Dubai’s first electronic government 20 years ago.

Sheikh Mohammed, meanwhile, has long supported education in coding.

One Million Arab Coders was launched in 2017 to equip a million youngsters with the skills needed to succeed in the 21st century.

In July, Sheikh Mohammed announced a new challenge, enabling graduates of the One Million Arab Coders programme to compete for the title of “top coder” in the Arab world.

The One Million Arab Coders Challenge offers a grand prize of $1 million, and the winner will announced within the next six months.