A new company has been created to complement educational efforts in literacy, basic mathematical skills and language abilities for young children.  

Bidaya (Arabic for ‘beginning’) has been established at twofour54, the commercial arm of the Media Zone Authority-Abu Dhabi, to create educational media content in Arabic, with the debut of new content in the next few weeks, with sponsorship from Mubadala Development Company.

The company’s inaugural project will be the Iftah Ya Simsim Educational Initiative, an Arabic-language adaptation of Sesame Street, utilising a proven model formulated by Sesame Workshop, the non-profit educational organisation whose global mission is to help all children reach their highest potential, said a statement.
 
Bidaya will seek out the best local talent for the project and it also plans to produce a variety of media content with the objective of achieving measurable educational gains for children in early school years, it said.

“Our strategy is to establish relationships with public and private institutions from across the region that have a passion for children and understand the importance of education,” said Robert Kneževic, vice president of Sesame Street International.

“This initiative represents the best practices, methodologies and global experience to create local content that is unique to Sesame Street – appealing, practical, developmentally appropriate, and relevant to parents as well as children.”

Iftah Ya Simsim will be supported by an Educational Advisory Council (EAC), comprising education experts and media professionals. The council will work in coordination with the Arab Bureau of Education for the Gulf States (ABEGS), which has developed educational focus areas for the new Iftah Ya Simsim and related content, said the statement.

Various organisations from across the region have already pledged support and cooperation with the initiative including the GCC Joint Program Production Institution, it said.

The original Iftah Ya Simsim first aired in the Mena region between 1979 and 1990. - TradeArabia News Service