JEDDAH, 10 February — The Arab Gulf Fund for United Nations Development Organizations has invited social organizations and academic institutions to submit nominations for its annual international prize for pioneering development projects.
The awards for 2001 come in three categories and cover the application of information technology in areas of education and health, provision of micro-credits through non-governmental organizations and reinforcement of voluntary work in the community. The first category has been allocated for projects implemented by the United Nations, international and regional organizations, the second for projects implemented by NGOs, and the third for projects implemented by individuals, the fund said in a statement.
AGFUND, headed by Prince Talal ibn Abdul Aziz, introduced the prize three years ago to encourage research on development projects involving the United Nations, international and regional organizations, NGOs, universities and research centers.
The prize committee includes Dr. Ahmad Muhammad Ali, president of the Islamic Development Bank, Prof. Federico Mayor, president of the Foundation for Culture of Peace and former director general of UNESCO, Dr. Y. Seyyid Abdulai, director general of OPEC Fund for International Development, and Rigoberta Menchu Tum, UNESCO goodwill ambassador for culture and peace and a Nobel Peace laureate. (A.N.)
