The Information and Communication Technologies fund, an UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) initiative, said it has inked several deals with top universities to sponsor 114 Emirati students in their academic careers.

The move comes as part of UAE's endeavor to promote its position globally in the ICT sector and meet the growing needs of the country for specialized graduates from the UAE in the related fields.

The key universities in the deal include Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), American University in Dubai (AUD), and American University in Ras Al Khaimah (Aurak).

From the 114 students covered by these agreements, 30 are set to attend the Masdar Institute for Master’s degree, 24 students (12 Bachelors and 12 Masters) are joining RIT, 30 students will go to AUD, and the remaining 30 students are enrolled at Aurak.

The agreement was signed by Dr Abdulqader Al Khayat, the chairman of the board of trustees for the ICT Fund with Dr Fred Moavenzadeh, the president of Masdar Institute; Dr Luther Troell, the vice president of RIT Dubai; Dr Lance De Masi, the president of AUD and Dr Hassan Hamdan Al Alkeem, the vice chancellor of Aurak.

Dr Al Khayat said, "These are a result of the efforts made with the Betha program through which the Fund aims to offer fully financed scholarships to distinguished UAE male and female students to study ICT-related disciplines in renowned international universities in the country and abroad."

"The program also aims to raise the academic level of those students and provide efficient local talents to our growing national economy," he added.

Commenting on the move, Dr Al Khayat said, "We ensured that the deals will benefit students in their studies by catalyzing them to continue their studies and achieve high scores. We chose top universities and are confident that students will benefit from their studies at these universities, succeed, and enjoy a fruitful future for themselves and their country."

Dr Eesa Bastaki, the CEO of ICT Fund, said, "We are witnessing today a new era for education of UAE students, and a step towards promoting local talents by providing the best levels of education."

"UAE national students are being developed so that they can effectively contribute to meeting the needs of our growing economy by becoming qualified to lead this growth, and achieve the aspirations of the country," he added.-TradeArabia News Service