Sudanese girl crowned Arab Reading Challenge winner

A 13-year-old girl from Sudan has won AED 500,000, thanks to her appetite for reading.

Hadeel Anwar bagged the prize money after winning the latest edition of the Arab Reading Challenge.

She was crowned champion at a ceremony in Dubai, by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Hadeel beat more than 13 million students from 49 countries in the region to clinch the title.

The initiative challenges participants between the ages of 8 and 18 to read as many books as they can over the course of an academic year.

.@HHShkMohd honors the Sudanese student Hadil Anwar, the winner in the #Arab_Reading_Challenge 2019.@ArabReading pic.twitter.com/TjE36hQAs6

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) November 13, 2019