The University of Bahrain in collaboration with BIPA and UN Development Program launches the Hackathon for innovative solutions for Post Corona Pandemic Recovery
The President of the University of Bahrain, Professor Doctor Riyad Yousif Hamza affirmed the importance of adopting innovative initiatives founded on scientific basis and scientific research in order to face the repercussions and effects of the Corona Pandemic (Covid-19) stressing on the importance of involving the students in the process of creating solutions to overcome the crisis in a manner that strengthens their national participation and prepares them to take charge of the efforts for the advancement of the country.
His statement came on the occasion of the University of Bahrain launching the Hackathon “Post Corona Pandemic (Covid-19) Recovery” in cooperation with the Bahrain Institute for Public Administration (BIPA) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
Prof. Dr. Hamza explained that the University of Bahrain (UoB) works to bolster the knowledge of the youth with scientific research tools which can be used to prepare work papers and research that lead to discovering solutions that contribute in dealing with the challenges resulting from crises and in particular the Novel Corona Pandemic Crisis.
The President of the University of Bahrain praised the tripartite partnership that brings together the University of Bahrain with Bahrain (UoB), Institute for Public Administration (BIPA) and the office of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in the Kingdom of Bahrain ” a partnership that promotes the cooperation and unifies the efforts to come up with innovative solutions for crises based on the best applied practices and scientific methodologies”.
For his part, His Excellency the Director General for the Institute for Public Administration, (BIPA), Dr. Raed Mohammed Bin Shams expressed his pleasure in the trust placed by the University of Bahrain in the outputs presented by the Institute for Public Administration (BIPA) and its role in building and developing current and future youth leadership by providing them with various skills in scientific research and innovative thinking. He added that innovation today is the fundamental pillar in various government and private institutions, for handling various crises and challenges, affirming that the cooperation of the Institute with the University of Bahrain and the UN Development Program in the Hackathon contributes in providing the coming generations with the requirements to forecast the challenges before they occur and to formulate strategies to deal with them in line with the future and latest developments.
Dr. Bin Shams explained that the Hackathon aims to support and develop innovative scientific and research initiatives that push the Kingdom of Bahrain to realize the Sustainable Development Goals in the field of Education, Economy , Innovation and Industry in addition to bolstering partnerships to achieve these goals by developing the capabilities of the youth to face the challenges of the future, and build the future with youth ambitions in line with the directives of the government and creating a balance between the outputs of the University and the Job Market.
As for Mr. Stefano Pettinato, the Resident representative for the UN Development Program in the Kingdom of Bahrain, he expressed his pleasure to see two of its main partners in the Development Program working together in an exciting and thought-provoking initiative engaging the students and the faculty and graduates of the innovation Laboratory as well as the experts from the United Nations Development Program.
He said: “At the UNDP we are constantly seeking to support capacity-building initiatives in various sectors and government institutions in the Kingdom of Bahrain, particularly those involved in education and training.” Mr. Petinato added that the Hackathon launched by the University of Bahrain is a prime example of fruitful cooperation between educational institutions to provide solutions to current and future challenges. He said we are keen to see a real use of innovation mechanisms that propose practical solutions to meet the desired aspirations in the Kingdom of Bahrain.