On Tuesday, November 24, 2015, Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan met with the Director-General of the Arab Reading Challenge, Ms. Najla Al Shamesi, in Amman.

During their meeting Her Majesty was informed about the Arab Reading Challenge initiative which “…supports for efforts to increase awareness on the importance of reading among students in the Arab world…” writes the Jordan Times.  

Established in September 2015 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum of Dubai the Arab Reading Challenge is noted to be largest project aimed at encouraging students in the Arab world to read, with more than a million students committing to read 50 million extracurricular books every academic year.

Overall, the initiative aims to encourage reading on a continuous basis through a comprehensive system of incentives and follow-up mechanisms throughout the academic year.  The Emirates News Agency notes that the “…challenge also includes several rounds of evaluation and qualification at the level of each school, educational zone, country, and finally the Arab world. The challenge seeks to create a new generation with excellent reading skills and a thirst for knowledge.”