15-Year Old Emirati ‘Teen-ovator’ behind Solar Bag, Fatima Al Kaabi, Aspires to be UAE Youth Minister

Dubai-UAE: 13 February, 2017:  Find a bigger cause to innovate, don’t innovate just for yourself. Innovate for your country, innovate for a problem you face – Innovate for a bigger goal than just yourself,” said Fatima Al Kaabi, the 15-year old Emirati inventor, when asked about the fundamental factor that inspires her to innovate.

Kaabi’s comments came at a panel discussion moderated by Emirati presenter Omar Butti titled ‘Innovation Belongs to Our Youth’, where she was joined by 17-year old Los Angeles-based software and app developer, Thomas Suarez.

The discussion presented by Emirates Integrated Telecommunication Company (Du) began with an audio visual message by the company chairman, Ahmad Bin Byatt, talking about the role of the youth in driving innovation. It explored themes of youth’s role in driving innovation, the importance of a supportive environment that facilitates innovation, how collaboration aids innovation and the role of the government and leadership in creating an enabling infrastructure for innovation.

Speaking about the role of the government in building an enabling environment, Fatima Al Kaabi praised the initiatives by the ministry of youth in tapping into the youth’s areas of interests and talent to create a platform that engages them and helps them serve the nation.

When asked to share a message to inspire other young inventors, Suarez said: “Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t accomplish something. The cliché ‘never give up’ is very true.”

Thomas Suarez started software programming early in his childhood and became a Tedx speaker at the age of 12, when he invented a mobile app ‘Bustin Jieber’ that went viral, because it tapped into pop-culture sentiment. He describes software development as a combination of art, math and logic. His other notable inventions include the Orb 3D printer which he admittedly developed because he was frustrated with his own 3D printer.

Fatima Al Kaabi, a 15-year old resident of Sharjah, spoke at the Tedx platform when she was 13-years old. She carries a screw-driver in her bag in case of any emergency, and switched schools when she first started exploring the world of inventing, to find a more supportive ecosystem. Recipients of several regional and local awards, Kaabi has invented a Braille printer, an Emirati Robot and a Robot Photographer.

The World Government Summit (WGS) 2017 has drawn the participation of more than 4,000 personalities from 139 countries around the world, reflecting the leading stature of the summit on regional and international levels and the high interest from governments, global organizations, private and public sector entities, decision makers, entrepreneurs, academics and university students as well as scientists and innovators. WGS 2017 features 150 speakers across 114 sessions that highlight the world’s most pressing challenges and showcase best practices and cutting-edge solutions to deal with them.