The Federal Youth Authority organized a youth debate session, hosted by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), entitled “Electronic Games, Are they truly harmful?” The debate was hosted by TRA Dubai office, and aimed to support the country’s efforts in enhancing youth capabilities in various fields.

The debate was attended by H.E. Eng. Majed Al Mesmar, TRA Deputy Director General for the Telecommunication Sector, and with the participation of a group of talented Emirati youth who are familiar with the latest technologies and electronic games.

A jury assessed the two teams’ capacities in discussions, dialogue and persuasion as well as their abilities to support their arguments with scientific studies and research. The jury included Eng. Adel Al Mehairi, Senior Manager aeCERT Section, Eng. Majid Alali, Information Security Services Manager, and Ahmad Al Blooshi, Senior Security Information Analyst.

H.E. Majed Al Mesmar said: “Selecting this topic was based on a living reality. At time of a widely spread electronic games, there is a great debate between supporters and opponents of electronic games, therefore we have to identify their positive and negative impacts on our youth, so we would be able to deal with them in the future. Through such debates, we ensure that our youth are aware and well-informed about these products”.

Moreover, Ms. Khuloud Al Hammadi, Coordinator of the Youth Debates Initiatives at the Federal Youth Authority, said: “The Youth Debates Initiative is highly important, as it provides an important platform to enhance positive and constructive dialogue, which is primarily aimed at developing youth skills in public speaking and discussions on national and international levels. It also aims to sharing experiences and knowledge that enable youth to improve their reality by identifying the needs and working to achieve their hopes and aspirations to actively contribute in their communities’ development.”

Youth Debates

Youth debates aim to support the participating youth to enhance their research skills, learn the art of high-level debates from regional experts, hone their critical thinking skills, sharpen their public speaking savvy, experience the power of teamwork. Additionally, It supports the youth to deepen their thinking on today’s most important topics and inform decision-makers of youth ideas on key topics, conduct real time market studies in a positive, smart and fun format, communicate their entities’ visions, goals and key needs and identify talented youth and attract them.