Sharjah Award for Arab Creativity Announces the Names of 18 Winners in Its 29th Edition

Sharjah Award for Arab Creativity Announces the Names of 18 Winners in Its 29th Edition

Al Qasimi: The Award Affirms the Ruler of Sharjah’s Vision in Supporting Young Creatives

Professor Mohammed Ibrahim Al Qasimi, Director of the Cultural Affairs Directorate at the Sharjah Department of Culture and Secretary-General of the Sharjah Award for Arab Creativity (First Edition), announced the names of the winners of the 29th edition of the award. The award is held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and is organized by the Cultural Affairs Directorate.

The number of winners reached 18 from various Arab countries, across the award’s six literary fields: poetry, novel, short story, theatrical text, children’s literature, and criticism.

Mohammed Al Qasimi stated:
“The Sharjah Award for Arab Creativity, with each new edition, reaffirms its creative essence in seeking out writers taking their first steps in the world of Arabic literature. It embodies the vision of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, who laid the foundations of this award, which is considered pioneering in its creative approach through its focus on young creatives. This exceptional cultural vision centers on discovering the first literary achievement of writers from across the Arab world, granting the award a distinct cultural identity as a celebratory platform and a nurturing space for creatives in six vital and diverse literary fields.”

He added:
“Over its successive editions, the award has contributed to shaping a rich and multifaceted creative environment and has enriched the Arabic library with hundreds of poetry, fiction, short story, critical, and theatrical publications. It is noteworthy that the award witnesses wide participation in every edition; this year it attracted more than 500 literary works from Arab countries, in addition to submissions from non-Arab countries by Arabic-speaking writers. This reflects the importance of the award among writers and confirms its commitment to opening its doors in every edition to discover new talents.”

Al Qasimi noted that the current edition received 164 entries from the Arab Republic of Egypt, 84 from Syria, 52 from Iraq, 49 from Algeria, 37 from Morocco, 37 from Yemen, 28 from Sudan, 24 from Jordan, 11 from Tunisia, 9 from Mauritania, 8 from the Sultanate of Oman, 5 from Saudi Arabia, 4 from the United Arab Emirates, and 4 from Lebanon, as well as one entry from Somalia. He also pointed out that countries such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Mali, Chad, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea, Eritrea, and Canada each participated with one literary work, emphasizing that receiving submissions from around the world confirms the award’s growing global reach and importance among writers from different countries.

The Secretary-General further explained that submissions were distributed across the fields as follows: poetry (118 entries), short story (153 entries), novel (130 entries), theatre (79 entries), children’s literature (45 entries)—with this edition dedicated to poetry collections for children aged 8–11—and literary criticism (25 entries), with this edition focusing on studies of manifestations of experimentation in contemporary short stories.

Mohammed Al Qasimi announced the names of the winners, noting: “After completing the screening and judging procedures and the deliberations of the judging committees, the Award Secretariat approved the following winning results”:

First: Poetry

1. First Prize: Ahmed Salama Salim Abed (Arab Republic of Egypt) 

2. Second Prize: Ahmed Imam Mahmoud Bayoumi (Arab Republic of Egypt)

3. Third Prize: Saddam Issa Bouaziz (People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria) 

Second: Short Story

1. First Prize: Ahmed Adel Mohammed Nasser Al Salmi (Republic of Yemen) 

2. Second Prize: Maha Abdulkarim Abdul Al-Badrani (Republic of Iraq) 

3. Third Prize: Badr Asouka (Kingdom of Morocco) 

Third: Novel

1. First Prize: Mai Al-Mouldi Al-Arabi Dhou (Tunisian Republic) 

2. Second Prize: Ahmed Mohammed Hamshari (Syrian Arab Republic) 

3. Third Prize: Yassin bin Mohammed Shanini (Tunisian Republic) 

Fourth: Theatre

1. First Prize: Zubaida Hassan Raja (Syrian Arab Republic) 

2. Second Prize: Ibrahim Issa Mohammed Ali (Republic of Yemen) 

3. Third Prize: Soumia Bounab (People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria)

Fifth: Children’s Literature

1. First Prize: Hussein Ni‘ma Hussein (Republic of Iraq) 

2. Second Prize: Mohammed Ismail Abdullah Sweilem (Arab Republic of Egypt) 

3. Third Prize: Omar Al-Raji (Kingdom of Morocco) 

Sixth: Literary Criticism

1. First Prize: Ahmed Mohammed Morsi Abdullah (Arab Republic of Egypt) 

2. Second Prize: Sondos Qasim Abdullah Al-Azzawi (Republic of Iraq) 

3. Third Prize: Nourhan Sayed Hassan Sayed (Arab Republic of Egypt)