Dubai Ruler honours Tunisian twins as winners of Arab Reading Challenge

The 12-year-old champions received a cash prize of Dh500k

- Ruqayya Al Qaydi

Tunisian twin sisters Bisan and Bilsan Kouka won the Arab Reading Challenge on Thursday, beating 32 million others to claim the crown.

The 12-year-old champions received a cash prize of Dh500,000.

Bisan and Bilsan, who have collectively read over 600 books, were honoured by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, during the award ceremony held at Dubai World Trade Centre on Thursday.

In its ninth edition, the Arab Reading Challenge recorded unprecedented participation, with over 32 million students from 50 countries, representing 132,112 schools and guided by 161,004 supervisors. The total prize pool for this year stands at Dh11 million, making it the largest and most comprehensive knowledge prize globally.

Bisan, who enjoys playing the oud and dreams of becoming a doctor, and Bilsan, who plays the violin and aspires to be a robotics engineer, emerged as champions from Tunisia's 128,666 participants.

Also claiming top honours was 11-year-old Mohammed Jassim Ibrahim from Bahrain, who secured second place and a Dh100,000 prize.