Zayed Award Virtual Event

Inspired by The Document of Human Fraternity, the Zayed Award was created to look at new possibilities for ourselves and our communities while providing inclusivity for all. This document touches upon the importance of peace, justice, goodness, beauty and human fraternity.

Signed by His Holiness Pope Francis and His Eminence the Grand Emam of Al-Azhar, this document instilled hopes of fate in humanity and coexistence in the historic meeting that was held in Abu Dhabi on February 4, 2019. This inspiring document helps us understand what it is that we can do together and supports the act of solidarity for one another.

This not only led to the official declaration of February 4 as the International Day of Human Fraternity but also encouraged the formation of the Higher Committee on Human Fraternity.

This award was created to honour and reward those who have dedicated their lives to helping others and building bridges between divided people. An award designed to uplift our spirits and look for new possibilities within our communities.

The 2021 Zayed Award for Human Fraternity was held virtually to invite people from all walks of life and experience this passion for humanity.

Anchored at the magnificent view of the Founder’s Memorial in Abu Dhabi, this annual award ceremony paid tribute to the Late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, UAE’s Founder and Humanitarian, and the prime inspiration of the Award. The Higher Committee on Human Fraternity also conveyed their deepest gratitude to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and patron of the Document for his inevitable encouragement and support of the Committee’s efforts.

The ceremony was streamed on www.zayedaward.org on February 4, 2021 from 17:30 GST. The evening commenced with Rt. Hon. Michaelle Jean, 27th Governor-General, Commander-In-Chief of Canada and one of the Jury Panelists of the Zayed Award.

Judge Mohamed Abdel Salam, Secretary-General of the Higher Committee, Former Advisor to His Eminence The Grand Imam spoke about the importance of the day and how it came into being. In celebration of the first edition of the Zayed Award of Human Fraternity, the Guest of Honours made the following remarks:

“International Day of Human Fraternity is a celebration of a historic world event, born two years ago with a message of peace from the wise ones to all mankind calling for cooperation and an end to wars, promoting tolerance, and harmony rejecting intolerance, hatred and power politics.”

Grand Imam, Prof. Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif

“Fraternity means respect. Fraternity means listening with an open heart. Fraternity means defending our own convictions because there is no true fraternity if one’s own convictions have to be negotiated.”

Pope Francis, Pope of the Catholic Church

UN Secretary-General António Guterres, and Moroccan-French activist, Latifa Ibn Ziaten were announced as the honourees of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity 2021.

Latifa, a civil society activist works with numerous communities to prevent youth radicalisation and religious extremism. Her vision is to make mutual-respect and co-operation a norm. While, António has worked on a number of admirable initiatives including modernising UN peacekeeping practices, and various other efforts to counteract hate speech and violence.

Their work has been a true testament of everything the Document stands for. The live streaming enabled the viewers from all over the globe to join these honourees accept this prestigious award.

In partnership with SYP and Digitalfarm, GTECH was given the opportunity to provide an optimal live streaming solution for the smooth functioning of this virtual event. We also helped in migrating the website to our servers for high-bandwidth streaming.

Using the latest in technology, we were able to live stream the ceremony through the website while also streaming it on YouTube simultaneously with subtitles in seven different languages including English, Arabic, French, Spanish, Portugese, Italian and Indonesian.

High-Quality Stream

With an excellent Content Delivery Network (CDN), we were able to deliver a smooth streaming via our serves without any disruptions. Our system was well-equipped to accommodate up to 50,000 viewers irrespective of their geographic location.

Technical Support

It is important to provide a support team to counteract any technical glitches. We had taken all the preventive measures to ensure perfect functioning of the live stream, GTECH had a team of highly-qualified members in place to troubleshoot any technical glitches that could have risen throughout the ceremony.

Analytics Report

Virtual Event Management is one of our core expertise, we believe it is imperative to understand the reach of any virtual event. GTECH submitted a detailed report with the number of viewers along with other metrics through an effective tracking tool post the event.

Digital Convergence

According to a recent study conducted by CNBC, 72.6% of Internet users are expected to use the web through their smartphones alone by 2025. We have already adapted to this change and made all our live streaming solution compatible to all smart devices across various platforms. In this case, the virtual ceremony could be viewed on laptop, computer, tablets and smartphones.

Distraction-Free Video Streaming

We wanted our viewers to have a seamless experience and feel like they are physically a part of this joyous occasion and hence, made sure our live streaming solution was free of any distractions.

Automated Email Campaign

Along with the live streaming solution, we sent out personalised emails to a list of VIP delegates. These automated emails comprised of the details of the ceremony to help the invitees make an informed decision and RSVP to the virtual event. These personalised automated emails were sent out in both English and Arabic.

The Zayed Award for Human Fraternity was a roaring success. GTECH was able to deliver a unparalleled live streaming solution with subtitles ranging from seven different languages. The top viewers of this global virtual event were from UAE, Morocco, Egypt, France, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. Our goal was to ensure a user-friendly experience with no errors, which was backed by a dedicated and professional team at GTECH.