Today's Edition
ABU DHABI (WAM)
The Sheikh Zayed Summer Festival 2026 concluded its inaugural edition in Al Wathba, Abu Dhabi, following a 46-day journey during which it successfully transformed the summer holidays into a time for learning, innovation, and talent discovery.
The experience brought together education, entertainment, sports and national heritage under one roof, offering a unique model for investing in people and shaping the future.
The festival was held under the patronage of UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and under the direction and supervision of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, and Chairman of the Presidential Court. Since its launch, he has emphasised that investing in future generations is an investment in the future.
The inaugural edition reflected the festival's strong appeal, with more than 20,000 male and female students from over 79 nationalities registering, while more than 10,000 students actually participated in its various programmes and activities.
Over the course of 46 days, the festival organised 8,096 workshops and activities, averaging 44 workshops and activities per day across four sessions. This reflected the breadth of the content and the diversity of programmes offered to participants.
The festival halls served as an open summer laboratory combining artificial intelligence, digital innovation, sports, heritage, health, creative media, and entertainment within a modern and safe educational environment.
The programmes covered areas including artificial intelligence, prompt engineering, machine learning, robotics, computer vision, augmented and virtual reality, cybersecurity, web design, drones and 3D printing. The aim was to empower participants to understand technology and develop innovative solutions through it.
At the same time, the festival strengthened young people's connection to Emirati identity through programmes focused on heritage and sana'a (traditional Emirati customs and etiquette), majlis etiquette and hospitality, traditional crafts, horse and camel riding, and national memory. In doing so, it brought together the tools of the future with pride in the nation's heritage.
The programmes extended to media and content creation through workshops on storytelling, public speaking, oratory, voice acting, animation, and on-camera skills.
Sports activities formed a major component of the festival, featuring eight sports, including football, judo, jiu-jitsu, chess, archery, as well as skating and hockey.
With more than 20,000 registered participants, over 10,000 actual participants, and 8,096 workshops and activities, the inaugural Sheikh Zayed Summer Festival demonstrated a model of investing in people by providing students with an environment in which they could learn and innovate, practice sports, explore national heritage, and discover their talent.
