Agreement to support initiatives designed to promote online Arabic content

The Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre (ALC), part of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Majarra, a leading provider of online Arabic content, to collaborate in multiple areas to promote the Arabic language both online and offline.

The MoU signing ceremony was held during the two-day Arabic Language Summit at Expo Dubai 2020, with signatories HE Dr. Ali bin Tamim, Chairman of ALC, and Abdulsalam Haykal, Executive Chairman of Majarra.

Together with the ALC, Majarra will contribute to the promotion of the emirate of Abu Dhabi as the world's leading destination for Arabic teaching and learning, while supporting the creation of Arabic intellectual content through publishing houses and digital libraries, and promoting translations to and from Arabic.

The agreement marks the beginning of cooperation between the two entities in a number of areas. It involves Majarra in the Centre's ‘Bridges to Publishing’ initiative to publish major, non-narrative books in various spheres, most notably the administrative, technical and scientific fields. It also seeks to build upon the Centre's commitment to promote Arabic content online, the reinvigoration of the Arabic language in the digital space, and the leadership of Majarra in publishing online Arabic content. 

The agreement also strives to improve the quality of content and enable several pioneering joint initiatives in the area of Arabic language technologies, language processing, Artificial Intelligence and large-scale data analysis, as well as driving leadership and investment that will contribute to the consolidation of a successful and sustainable industry.

HE Dr. Ali Bin Tamim, Chairman of ALC, said: “Through this partnership, we look forward to drawing on the admirable expertise of Majarra to establish research partnerships with technical and academic institutions around the world that are dedicated to the understanding and growth of the Arabic language. This opens up new prospects for both parties to strengthen the role of Abu Dhabi as a centre for knowledge and creativity, that focuses on the economy, the community and human development This MoU will be instrumental in developing Arabic language technologies and online applications and contribute to a vibrant, creative economic sector that is attractive to pioneers, investors and partners.”

Abdulsalam Haykal, Chairman of Majarra, added: “I am delighted with this strategic partnership with the ALC, which is a powerful addition to our range of partnerships this year. The ALC has, in a short space of time, established a highly dynamic and influential presence through advanced programmes that support institutions and individuals working in the creative fields of the Arabic language. The agreement is underpinned by shared objectives and allows us to provide our expertise to Arab users of different interests. The development of Arabic language industries has a broad cross-country impact and we seek to increase its contribution to the creative economy.”

Majarra is a technology company that offers a network of reliable, high-quality online content platforms in Arabic, available through a single subscription. Majarra’s platforms cover management, science, technology, psychology, general health, finance, and more.

The ALC and Majarra will seek to build on the MoU and bolster their strategic approach to meet the growing demand for reliable and high-quality online Arabic content in a variety of disciplines.

-ENDS-