Prof. Najib Al Khaja, Secretary General of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Medical Sciences is the "Ambassador of Hope" for Al Jalila Foundation; a new institution aims at supporting medical education and research. This was announced during the official opening ceremony of Al Jalila foundation by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, accompanied by his daughter H.H. Sheikha Al Jalila. The Opening Ceremony was held at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Academic Medical Center in Dubai Healthcare City, and attended by H.H. Sheikh Majid bin Mohammed and several senior government officials.

 

During the ceremony, Prof. Najib Al Khaja delivered a speech in which he said: "Over forty years, the UAE has achieved thousands of great achievements in a very short time. UAE has improved the provided medical services which have been reflected on the increased average age of individuals from 45 years, at the beginning of the establishment of the Union, to more than 70 years nowadays".

 

"The launch of Al Jalila Foundation is the first step towards the establishment of specialized institutions to adopt the march of the scientific research. We need to invest in such field and support the awareness towards the importance of the scientific research culture at schools, universities and the concerned institutions. It is my honor to be chosen the "Ambassador of Hope" for Al Jalila Foundation, and encourages me on exerting further efforts in the future ", Al Khaja said.

 

"We must develop our needs, and they are many! Our benefits from the imported applications of the scientific research are different from the producers’ benefits as they have different environmental conditions. In the field of medicine, there is an urgent need to discover the reasons behind many diseases such as Diabetes, Cancers and Genetic Diseases. The local rates of such diseases are higher than the global ones, and scientific research is a key solution for such a problem. While UAE has many qualified people in all specialties, some of them have gotten their opportunities and others are still waiting. Al Jalila Foundation will provide good opportunities for many scientists to participate in building the future of UAE to be a centre of excellence in medical treatment and education in the region", Al Khaja added.

 

It is worth mentioning that Al Jalila Foundation is a non-profit organization. One of its goals within 2013 is collecting donations with an amount of AED 100 million to be spent on three main pillars including supporting the scientific research, the medical education and the outstanding healthcare services.