Khaberni - The Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation has closed the application for the Abdul Hameed Shoman Children's Literature Award for the 20th edition, in the field of "Story" with the theme: "Childhood: A world of challenges," intended for the age group of six years and above.
The foundation announced that it received 2,800 applications, including 1,746 complete applications and 1,054 incomplete ones, which did not fulfill the application requirements by their owners.
Applications were received from 20 Arab countries and 25 non-Arab countries, with the top participating countries distributed as follows: Egypt: 26%, Jordan: 18.6%, Syria: 17.5%, Algeria: 8.9%, Palestine: 8.4%, Morocco: 5%, Tunisia: 3.5%, Iraq: 2.7%, Yemen: 2.6%, Lebanon: 1.9%, Saudi Arabia: 1.3%, Libya: 0.8% Oman and Sudan: 0.7% each, Bahrain: 0.5%, Kuwait and UAE: 0.3% each, while Qatar, Eritrea, and Djibouti each constituted 0.1%.
Amman was the most participating at the level of governorates in the kingdom with 65.5%, followed by Zarqa: 9%, Irbid: 8%, Balqa: 6%, Madaba, Ajloun, Karak, and Aqaba: 2% each. Ma'an, Tafilah, and Mafraq: 1% each, and Jerash: 0.5% each.
The foundation stated in a press release today that the submitted works would undergo a preliminary sorting phase to confirm their compliance with the award’s criteria, then they will be forwarded to a specialized committee for judging, noting that the winners will be announced in the third quarter of this year.
Since 2006, "Shoman" has been organizing this annual award for authors in the Arab world and globally, while the criteria for evaluating the works are based on language and style, content and ideas, innovation, and the originality of the creative work.
The award is granted annually in the field of children's literature in one of the following literary arts: "Story, Poetry, Novel, Children’s Play," consisting of a certificate in the name of the winner and the topic they won in, a shield bearing the name and logo of the award, plus an amount of (18) thousand dinars, distributed as: first place (10) thousand dinars, second place (5) thousand dinars, and third place (3) thousand dinars.
The Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation, the cultural and social responsibility arm of the Arab Bank, is a non-profit organization concerned with investing in knowledge, cultural, and social creativity to contribute to the rise of communities in the Arab world through leadership thought, literature, arts, and innovation.
