Young writers and creatives aged under 11 to 18 took centre stage at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature 2026, showcasing their talent across storytelling, poetry, crafts, and digital media, and reflecting the UAE’s vibrant and inclusive literary landscape.
Dubai, UAE,January 2026: The 18th edition of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature celebrated young literary talent through six prestigious annual prize-giving ceremonies, recognising exceptional achievements in reading, writing, and creative expression across a range of student competitions organised by its parent organisation, the Emirates Literature Foundation.
United by the theme of hope, this year’s competitions invited young people to imagine brighter futures, explore empathy and resilience, and give voice to their ideas through the written and spoken word, as well as visual and digital storytelling.
Emirates NBD Poetry for All:
Now in its ninth cycle, this annual competition, held on 21 January, celebrates the art of poetry performance and recital through a thoughtful and compassionate assessment process. Participants are evaluated on their understanding of the text, clarity of delivery, and fluency of expression.
Open to UAE-based students aged 8–18, including students of determination, the programme continues to champion young voices across the country. This year’s edition showcased outstanding examples of oral narration from 1,609 students, honouring and sustaining the rich poetic traditions of the Arab world.
Final performances took place at the Festival, with poets Brent Shuttleworth, Carlos Andrés Gómez, Chandrama Deshmukh, and Simon Mole assessing the English-language performances, and Jassim Al Obaidli, Mohamed Alhabsi, Najat Aldaheri, Sarah Abdullah, and Soukaina Habiballah judging the Arabic performances. The full list of winners can be found on the competition website.
Chevron Readers’ Cup:
The 2025–2026 edition of the Chevron Readers’ Cup, held on 22 January, tested comprehension, memory recall, mindful reading, and critical thinking, while promoting sportsmanship and collaboration. The competition recorded a landmark level of participation, with more than 5,000 students competing across 1,464 teams.
Teams competed in two age groups in both Arabic and English, with entries from across the GCC, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE. Following a rigorous selection process, 40 English-language teams and 40 Arabic-language teams were shortlisted for the highly competitive final rounds.
Winning teams received trophies for their schools, individual medals for team members, and Magrudy’s book vouchers valued at AED 1,000. Chevron has sponsored the Readers’ Cup for fourteen years and was represented at the prize-giving ceremony by Muhammad Al Sadek, Commercial and Government Relations Manager who presented the trophies alongside representatives from the Emirates Literature Foundation. The full list of winners can be found on the competition website.
Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi Letter Writing Competition
The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi’s much-loved letter writing competition returned on 24 January, celebrating exemplary penmanship among young people across the UAE.
Students were invited to write a letter to someone special, exploring the theme ‘hope’ with submissions demonstrating both aesthetic quality and creative expression. A distinctive feature of this competition is its commitment to reviving the often-overlooked art of handwriting.
This year, 2464 students took part. Winners were awarded the opportunity to attend an exclusive meet-and-greet with bestselling children’s authors Lucy Strange and Nadia Al Najjar both featured in the Emirates LitFest 2026 programme.
Arabic entries were judged by Doha Khassawneh, Nadia Al Najjar and Shaikha Al Zeyara. English entries were assessed by Beverly Jatwani, Daniela Tully, Ebtisam Al-Beiti, Hilda Youssef, Kathy Urban and Saniya Chughtai. Winner details have been published on the competition website.
Oxford University Press Story Writing Competition
A total of 7,027 students from the UAE and across the GCC competed in the Oxford University Press Story Writing Competition, held on 25 January, submitting original stories on the theme ‘hope’ for the opportunity to become published authors.
Shortlisted students had their work reviewed by a distinguished panel of authors. The English-language judging panel comprised April Hardy, Kathy Hoopmann, and Kathy Butti, while Arabic submissions were reviewed by Bashayer Al Atrouzi, Muhannad Al Akouse, and May Shabaklo. Names of winners across all age categories are available on the competition website.
Al Futtaim Digital Storytelling Prize:
The third Al Futtaim Digital Storytelling Competition, held on 26 January, invited students aged 12–18 to embrace contemporary storytelling by producing short-form vertical films inspired by their favourite Arabic book or poem.
From 48 submissions, three winning teams were selected by a judging panel drawn from the education and media sectors, including Mohamed Amine Khelil Cherfi, Mohammed Fathi, Nema Katranji and Shireen Sabanegh.
The Winning team, Al Ghaf Girls Team, Zayed Educational Complex – Al Dhait (Cycle 2 and 3), Ras Al Khaimah, received a plaque, book voucher from Magrudy’s, and the opportunity to collaborate with a production studio. Winner details are available on the competition website.
Book in a Box Project:
Primary school classes from across the UAE participated in the Book in a Box Project, creating imaginative dioramas inspired by a book or a scene from a book using recycled materials.
From 354 submissions, 20 shortlisted works were selected for display at the Festival. These entries were evaluated by a judging panel comprising renowned illustrators John Patrick Green, Maitha Al Khayat, Petr Horáček, and Rachel Bright. Three winners were recognised, each receiving a commemorative plaque and Magrudy’s book vouchers valued between AED 500 and AED 1,000. The first place winner was Class 2A, Pristine Private School, Dubai, with winner details published on the competition website.
Supporting National Priorities:
Through these student competitions, the Emirates Literature Foundation continues to nurture creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression among young people, aligning closely with the UAE’s Year of Community (2025) and Year of Family (2026).
By bringing students, schools, educators, and families together around books and storytelling, the programme strengthens cultural connection, encourages shared learning experiences, and reinforces literature as a powerful tool for hope, dialogue, and belonging.
