The Saudi Education Ministry and the Saudi Research & Media Group (SRMG) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to co-manage the Manga Arabia project as a step to promote culture and entertainment knowledge. By supporting this project, the ministry plans to provide the Manga Arabia Kids Magazine, in both its digital and print versions, for free for all the primary and middle schools in the Kingdom.
The MoU signed under the patronage of Dr. Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Sheikh, minister of education, and in the presence of Jomana Al-Rashid, CEO of SRMG, is aimed at investing the Manga Arabia Kids magazine in the academic curricula and student activities, in addition to organizing diverse school contests that involve story narration and character design.
The Arabia Manga is an ambitious cultural project and a reliable, secure, and accessible source of creative productions inspired by the culture of the Saudi society and its fundamental values. It also involves international translated works produced in Japan that contribute to enriching the national content with high-quality innovative materials that satisfy the creativity of readers, suits all family members, and lures all age groups.
“This MoU is aimed at emphasizing the value of local creative works, enhancing awareness of children and youth about the national culture and traditions, and opening new perspectives in the cultural and innovative industries. This shall contribute to boosting economic growth in the Kingdom, and enhancing students' talents on a high level. The ministry believes in the importance of sharing creative contents with the new generation to empower and encourage it in building the future,” said Dr. Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Sheikh, minister of education on the sidelines of the signing event.
For her part, Jomana Al-Rashid, CEO of SRMG, said: “Our strategic partnership with the education ministry is an important milestone that would help provide new means of creativity and innovation for the younger generation by broadening the reach of the Manga Arabia Kids Magazine to over four million students in both the primary and middle schools across the kingdom.”
Dr. Essam Bukhary, editor-in-chief of Manga Arabia, highlighted the importance of the MoU in ensuring the reach of Manga Arabia to the Saudi youth, which could help increase the time they dedicate for reading. “Saudi Arabia has ranked 11th among the countries that read the most in the world. This agreement aims to bring the Kingdom among the top five countries by attracting more readers and increasing the nation's overall reading hours.”
SRMG launched the Manga Arabia project on August 17, in an ambitious step aimed at empowering the new generation, boosting their imagination to build the future, and exporting Saudi and Arab creations to the world.
The Manga Arabia Project, which seeks to attract 180 million Arabs to reading for entertainment, plans to launch two Arabic magazines: Manga Arabia Kids with a content that targets children between 10 and 15 years old; and Manga Arabia with a content that targets youth aged 15 years and above.
The two magazines will have two versions, print (monthly) and digital (weekly), and each of them will have an app that provides an amusing and secure experience with a sophisticated content written with a simple Arabic language.
