His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, visited the Sheikh Zayed Summer Festival in Al Wathba and met the UAE national team preparing for the WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 competition, underscoring the country’s focus on equipping young people with advanced technical and vocational skills.
Accompanied by Minister of Family Sana bint Mohammed Suhail and senior officials from the Presidential Court, Sheikh Mansour received a detailed briefing on the festival’s educational, training and recreational programmes. The event is designed to turn the summer holiday into a productive period of skills development, creativity, innovation and reinforcement of national identity and Emirati values for children and youth.
More than 30 national, academic, security, sports and community organisations are delivering over 3,000 workshops and specialised programmes targeting more than 10,000 students across different age groups. The festival creates an integrated learning environment that combines knowledge with practical application for participants aged 6 to 18, as well as families and visitors of all ages.
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During the same visit, Sheikh Mansour toured the pavilion of the Abu Dhabi Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (ACTVET) and reviewed preparations by the UAE team for WorldSkills Shanghai 2026. The competition, the world’s largest international event for technical and vocational skills, will take place in Shanghai, China, in September.
The UAE team consists of 17 male and female competitors who will take part in 16 technical and vocational skill categories. Their preparation follows a structured roadmap managed by ACTVET that includes talent identification, selection and intensive world-class training programmes aimed at raising readiness for international competition.
Sheikh Mansour stressed that the people of the UAE remain the nation’s greatest asset and that investing in advanced skills and modern knowledge is the most important investment in the future. He said participation in global competitions demonstrates the high calibre of national talent and its capacity to compete and innovate on the world stage. He expressed confidence that the team would present an outstanding example of Emirati youth and wished them every success.
WorldSkills brings together young professionals from around the world to compete across dozens of disciplines. It promotes professional excellence, advances technical and vocational education and training systems, aligns skills development with current and future labour-market needs, and provides a platform for exchanging expertise and best practices.
The Sheikh Zayed Summer Festival forms part of wider national efforts to make productive use of the school holiday through high-quality programmes that blend education and entertainment. These initiatives support the UAE’s vision of building a knowledge-based economy driven by innovation while helping students develop practical skills and strengthen their connection to national values and heritage.
By combining large-scale summer learning opportunities with targeted preparation for elite international skills competitions, the UAE continues to prioritise the development of a skilled, competitive and future-ready generation. The dual focus on broad-based student engagement and high-performance technical training reflects a comprehensive approach to human capital development.
