His Excellency Sheikh Hamdan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, expressed his pride in the UAE’s achievment in the field of space technology, which puts it in the ranks of developed countries, and enables it to enter the international competition in the coming years, pointing out that starting to work on the construction of the first Islamic Arab probe to Mars will open scientific horizons for researchers and explorers, stressing the importance of the initiatives launched by the State and led by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and his brother His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, and that reflects their belief in the ability of national scientific cadres to supplement national initiatives like this, and in the commitment of educational institutions in promoting scientific research in all fields, specifically the service of this ambitious project, and establishing advanced programs in the various sectors of work, especially the academic programs in Aerospace Engineering and Space.

This came after the UAE Space Agency in the Mohammed bin Rashid Center for Government Innovation in Dubai signed an agreement on Monday, October 20^th, with the Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST) in order to implement the Mars probe project, and launch it and follow up on the implementation of all its stages under the supervision of the Agency, and to be funded directly from them, according to the seven-year- agreement. The agreement emphasized the importance of building a national research base, the development of specialized national cadres in the coming years, and the commitment of all the international partners to transfer knowledge across clear channels to the national workforce working on the project, in order to form a solid scientific base for the development of the space sector in the UAE as a strategic sector within the national economy.

It is noteworthy that the Emirati probe is scheduled to reach Mars in 2021, in conjunction with the 50^th anniversary of the establishment of the UAE, and the probe’s journey will take 9 months, and the UAE will be within the only 9 countries in the world that have space programs to explore the Red Planet.