The Ministry of Culture and Youth has launched its Career Excellence Awards this year with the aim of improving the Ministry's performance and competitiveness. The awards will help promote the cultural, media and youth sectors locally and internationally and mobilise their contribution to the national economy. 

In a statement, Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth, said: "The UAE government adopts the principles of excellence, leadership and competitiveness in various fields of work. Thanks to the support and vision of the UAE leadership that our country is a role model in institutional work at the regional and global levels. The UAE has made excellence and quality assurance a priority to reach the highest levels of efficiency and competitiveness.” 

Her Excellency continued: "Through the Career Excellence Awards we honour the employees for their service and dedication to support the smooth functioning of the Ministry and its various departments. We acknowledge the importance of the advancement of our efforts and develop employee capabilities and keep them motivated to deliver the best results. We have adopted this culture to reach the highest levels of development and sustainability in the government performance index. It plays a key role in improving the Ministry’s efficiency and helps us achieve our goals.”

The awards have seven medals in various categories. These include the "Leadership Medal" which will honour the best Assistant Undersecretary or Executive Director for their influence and leadership skills. Career Medals will be presented on all career levels at the Ministry and include a “Management Medal” dedicated to employees in supervisory positions in the Ministry such as directors, department managers, department heads, unit heads and so on. 

Then there are medals for “Specialist Positions" which will be given to employees excelling in technical and engineering roles, as well as experts and consultants, specialists, researchers, planners, and equivalent roles. 

Other awards include the "Customer Happiness Medal" which encourages all employees in various service channels to deliver great customer service; the medal for "Jobs of the Future" which provides workers in jobs that keep pace with the disciplines and skills required to enhance readiness for the future. 

The "Best Innovator Award" will honour originality and uniqueness, or any creations registered in the names of the Ministry employees. These creations could be related to their field of work, or outside the framework of their jobs, regardless of their professional titles or educational degrees. The Ministry has also allocated the "Youth Medal”, which will be awarded to exceptional employees under the age of 35 years.

The Ministry has stipulated specific criteria under which medals are awarded such as: performance, achievement, effective leadership and influence, learning and development, innovation, and positive citizenship. The awards are based on thinking, planning, implementation and application, results, and impact, as well as the ability to share knowledge.