Launched At UoB with the Participation Of 12 Arab Countries “Bahrain IoT Challenge” Program Discusses the Localization of Technology and Building Student Capabilities

Sakhir – University of Bahrain – Mansoor Al-Wanni
28 July 2022
With the participation of 12 Arab countries, the first edition activities of the ” Bahrain IoT and AI Challenge 2022″ program were launched last week at the University of Bahrain (UoB).
“Bahrain Challenge” is a national program that seeks to incubate ideas and build different capacities for university students and startups that have innovative ideas in the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) and other related fields.
The program looks to raise awareness on the importance of IoT and AI, as the two fields play the greatest role in changing and developing all current industries, which serves the digital transformation process.
In her speech, the Dean of the College of Engineering at UoB, Dr. Shaikha Haifa bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, announced the launch of the Challenge Program, which is being held for the first time in the Kingdom of Bahrain, in the presence of representatives from government and academic institutions, and a number of industrialists and innovative people.
“Through this program, the University of Bahrain seeks to provide local cadres and competencies that contribute to the localization of technology in the areas and applications of the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and other smart applications, that are compatible with Bahrain Vision 2030.” Dr. Haifa stated.
The Challenge Program seeks to provide a chance for university students and startups in the Kingdom of Bahrain to compete by presenting qualitative innovative projects in AI and IoT journals, in addition to providing support to the participating teams through workshops, training and guidance during the period of the Challenge.
In addition to the Kingdom of Bahrain, countries participating in the challenge program include: the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the Sultanate of Oman, the State of Qatar, the State of Palestine, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, the Kingdom of Morocco, the Republic of Tunisia, and the Republic of Lebanon.
Bahrain IoT and AI Challenge is part of a regional program, the Arab Challenge Program. The final results of the Arab IT and AI Challenge are scheduled to be announced on the sidelines of the activities of GITEX Week in the Emirate of Dubai next October 2022, after the completion of the local qualifiers for each country.
This Challenge Program is being held for the sixth year in a row, with more than 5,000 participants in three main tracks: school students, graduation projects, and startups in the Arab countries. The past years witnessed the participation of more than 358 startups, 2173 graduation projects, and 516 projects from high schools.
It is worth noting that the Dean of the College of Engineering at UoB, Dr. Shaikha Haifa bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, represented the Kingdom of Bahrain in the activities of the Arab IoT and AI Challenge, which was held virtually on Zoom.

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