A great resource for scholars, journalists, businessmen, diplomats and students
For the last several weeks, I have been traveling in the Middle East on journalistic assignments. I thought I should alert G2K members to one of the most remarkable people I've encountered in my very long journalistic career -- His Highness Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, the UAE's Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research. Almost single handedly he created he created the country's Higher Colleges of Technology 20 years ago, and it now has 16 campuses around the UAE, and some 20,000 Emirati students, plus faculty from 100 countries. More than 35,000 Emiratis have graduated from HCT institutions, Sheikh Nahayan is also HCT's chancellor, and chancellor of UAE University, and Zayed University.
Why am I alerting G2K members about this? Because the HCT has extraordinary resources available to academics, journalists, diplomats, businessmen, and students. It is strictly a nonpolitical and nonpartisan organization. Sheikh Nahayan is very accessible, which is unusual for a person hailing from royalty. His vice chancellor, Dr. Tayeb A. Kamali is equally accessible, and open to dialogue with the outside world. (E-mail address: kamali@hct.ac.ae)
For G2K members who seek an important, valuable addition to their list of resources for informed and open perspectives on the UAE and the region -- on issues including higher education, enterprise, technology, and development economics -- may I suggest being in touch with HCT. For journalists there are plenty of interesting stories to be done here; for researchers and others, HCT is a massive treasure trove of current and archival material relating to the Gulf and the Middle East.
And last, but not least, they are a very nice group of people at HCT.