ABU DHABI, 13th February, 2019 (WAM) -- Sandooq Al Watan - the private sector initiative to boost the UAE’s social development - has announced the launch of the Centurium Prize, an initiative to enhance scientific research and development efforts within the UAE.

Aiming to improve the capabilities of national human resources and the scientific research community to meet the requirements and challenges of the future, the venture was announced as part of the UAE Innovation Month - which runs until 28th February, and the Abu Dhabi Innovation Week.

The prize comprises a series of international scientific competitions that have been devised to stimulate students, researchers, scientists, federal and government entities, as well as private companies, to find innovative solutions to the biggest challenges facing the UAE in an array of vital fields and sectors.

"The prize reflects the vision of the UAE's leadership to instil a culture of innovation in the country and to achieve the goals of UAE vision 2071, which aspire to make the UAE the best country in the world by investing in youth and enhancing the efforts of scientific research and development," said Mohamed Al Qadhi, General Manager of Sandooq Al Watan.

The prize, he said, is the latest initiative from Sandooq Al Watan to support researchers and scientists in the UAE to establish exceptional innovative and technological solutions that represent a national contribution to local and global problems.

The Centurium Prize is managed by the Sandooq Al Watan’s research platform ‘research.ae,’ which currently supports more than 80 researchers in the UAE. The competition includes teams representing various sectors in UAE, including the environment, health and industry. The initiative will award significant cash prizes to participating scientific teams.