Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation launches Turjuman Programme for producing translators in the Arab World

The programme is aimed at contributing practically and effectively to upgrading the levels of translation in the Arab World by means of producing and training translators with the aim of improving their performance and production.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation and the American University of Sharjah had been signed before the announced was made.

Under the MoU, the university will hold a certified translator course, a six-week training period for translators holding bachelor's degrees and have a translation experience of no less than 2 years and no more than 4 years.

The MoU was signed by Yasser Hareb, Vice President for Culture at Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, Dr Winfred Thompson, Chancellor of the American University of Sharjah, and a number of officials from both parties.

The Turjuman Programme comes as part of the chain of strategic initiatives and programmes that have been launched by the foundation since its inception in October last year.

The programme is aimed at improving the level and quality of the translated books and sciences in the field of management and business and developing translations into Arabic through qualifying translators and training them in the use of the advanced translation technologies.

It is also aimed at helping revivify translation in the Arab World and render it a contributor to the economic and academic development.

"The foundation is paying utmost attention to translation, this being one of the most important channels for conveying knowledge of the other cultures and a major contributor to and supporter of our endeavours for building the knowledge capabilities in the Arab World", Hareb said. "This comes at a time the translation industry in the Arab World is experiencing a distinct slump that has urged us to launch such programmes that give a new momentum to this industry, which is viewed as a key pillar for building knowledge and boosting development", he added.

"Through the Turjuman Programme, we are looking forward to redressing the shortage of efficient translators capable of producing such translations that live up to the expectations in terms of both quality and quantity. Based on this, we have conducted a study of the translators' professional requirements and come up with specialized practical programmes for upgrading the career of such translators who will play a key role in pushing the wheel of translation in the Arab World forward", Hareb said.

The Certified Translator Programme will feature 20 students in each course and is open to all Arab nationalities.

The trainees will get 120 training hours in the course, which extends to six weeks. They will be trained in translation of management and business articles and the use of modern translation technologies.

Applications for joining the programme are expected to be received from May 2008, provided that study in the first course will start in June, giving the applicants the chance to graduate in July 2008.

As far as co-operation with the foundation is concerned, Dr Thompson said:

"We are pleased at the co-operation between the university's Department of Arabic Studies with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for introducing a programme that will contribute practically and efficiently to upgrading the level of translation in the Arab World, boosting the capabilities of translators while offering them the necessary training for enhancing their qualifications and crystallizing their skills in this significant field. We hope that this co-operation will continue for years and will yield a generation of qualified translators in the Arab World".

A detailed plan will be made for the specialized committees to receive, study and evaluate the participation applications.

The committees will later announce the names of the candidates and arrange for their joining the programme.

The committees will also track the academic attainment of the candidates during the study period and will announce the titles of the books that have been translated by the students during their study as soon as the students have graduated.

It is noteworthy that early this year the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation launched the "Tarjem" programme as part of the segment of culture in a bid to help streamline and support the movement of translation from and into Arabic and contribute to enhancing the knowledge-based capabilities of the Arab World in all fields.

For this purpose, the foundation took upon itself to have 1,000 books translated within the coming three years in co-operation with a number of the most outstanding Arab translation and publishing houses.

The first year of the Tarjem programme's plan will ensure the translation of 365 books, a rate of one book per day, which is equivalent to the total bulk of books translated in the Arab World in one year.

The programme will focus on translating the most important books worldwide in the different intellectual fields, particularly management books due to their vital importance in the current stage.