Leader Award Dubai, Dec. 4, 2005 (WAM) -- General Sheikh Mohammedbin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE DefenceMinister, presented the first-ever Young Arab Leaders (YAL) Awardsat a glittering ceremony held at the end of the YAL Forum onSunday.

Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan received The Young ArabLeader Award for ongoing support of Non-Government Organizationsand Social Entrepreneurship in the Arab World.

Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain wonthe Young Arab Leader Award for the public sector while SheikhAbdulla bin Mosaed Al Saud was named the Young Arab Leader forhis contributions to the manufacturing sector.

A special award was given posthumously to the late former TradeMinister of Lebanon, Basel Fleihan.

The other winners included Sameer Al Ansari, Chief ExecutiveOfficer of Dubai International Capital for leadership in thefinancial sector.

Ahmed Al Sayegh, Chief Executive Officer of Dolphin Energy wonthe Young Arab Leader Award for the energy sector.

Mohammed Al Gergawi, Chairman of the Young Arab Leaders, congratulated the winners. He said the award celebrates leadershipand excellence in the Arab world. "The winners are all role modelsfor young people in the region. Their successes are inspiringgreater aspiration and achievement among a new generation ofArab leaders," he added.

Gergawi also thanked Sheikh Mohammed for his supportand patronage for the Young Arab Leaders movement. He saidSheikh Mohammed has "given us the energy and direction to builda group of young Arab entrepreneurs, innovators and trend-setterswho collectively will motivate young Arab people to strive forgreater distinction in many walks of life."The award ceremony brought to a close the two-day Young ArabLeaders (YAL) Forum. The event brought together a diverse andselect group of current and former public figures, business leaders,senior representatives of multinational corporations and keyNGO representatives to participate in a series of panel discussionsand dynamic interactive workshops.

The goal of the forum was to develop an action plan that allthe participants can help implement during the coming year. Byidentifying specific ways to address the challenges of our regionand asking each participant to make a specific commitment totake action in one of the areas discussed, this event provedto be an unprecedented and effective forum for leaders and theircommunities around the region.

The forum was attended by Young Arab Leaders members and othersenior policy and decision-makers from Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon,Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, as well as fromEurope and the US.