Founding Council
Since the establishment of the "ARID" scientific platform, the idea of creating an international research university that promotes scientific values and leverages the digital infrastructure developed by the platform emerged. This initiative arose through meetings of various administrative bodies of the "ARID" platform, including the General Secretariat, the Advisory Board, the Board of Directors, and the Scientific Council. The vision aimed to establish a non-traditional university that relies on digital education, benefiting from the platform's scientific reputation and its agreements with global universities and institutions.
On October 23, 2023, the Supreme Advisory Board of the "ARID" platform formed a subcommittee to study and activate the university project. The committee included a distinguished group of academics, such as the Chairman of the Board, Professor Dr. Abdul Razzaq Mukhtar Mahmoud, Dr. Mohamed Maher Obaid, Dr. Mohamed Saad, and Dr. Essam Mshahit. The committee worked diligently on developing the idea through several meetings and preparing preliminary studies, which were submitted to the platform's General Secretariat.
The General Secretariat instructed the CEO to form the Founding Council of the university, which included renowned professors from various universities and scientific institutions. On January 1, 2024, Decision No. (J.A.D.1) was issued to form the Founding Council of ARID International University for Graduate Studies.
The Founding Council began its work on January 28, 2024, and continued until May 10, 2024. During this period, the university’s philosophy, identity, academic accreditation plan, academic programs, organizational structure, strategic plan, regulatory policies, website, launch plan, and financial feasibility study were approved. The council's work concluded with the approval and documentation of the final founding dossier.
The Founding Council issued several important recommendations, including documenting the founding phase in the university's records, reviewing and analyzing the founding files to extract lessons learned, and preparing for the pre-official announcement phase of the university.
Names of the Founding Council Members: Prof. Dr. Silwan Kamal Jamil Aboud - State of Qatar
Prof. Dr. Abdul Razzaq Mukhtar Mahmoud - Arab Republic of Egypt
Prof. Dr. Akram Mohamed Zaki - Malaysia
Prof. Dr. Liqaa Maki - State of Qatar
Prof. Dr. Dawood Al-Hadabi - Malaysia
Prof. Dr. Yasser Tarshani - Malaysia
Prof. Dr. Youssef Abdullah Al-Suwaidi - Sultanate of Oman
Prof. Dr. Aws Hilal - Republic of Iraq
Prof. Dr. Ahmed Abdulrazaq Sayed Omar - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Prof. Dr. Mohamed Maher Obaid - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Prof. Dr. Mahmoud Saad Mahmoud Mahdi Al-Sahi - Arab Republic of Egypt
Prof. Dr. Marwa Mohamed Al-Baz - Arab Republic of Egypt
Prof. Dr. Mohamed Al-Dahmani - Kingdom of Morocco
Prof. Dr. Omar Abu Bakr - Sultanate of Oman
Prof. Dr. Abdulillah Hilali - Kingdom of Morocco
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dhaifallah Bin Mohamed Al-Dhaian - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Amira Zubair Rifai Simbes - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hind Hussein Obaid - Republic of Iraq
Dr. Taha Ahmed Hamid Al-Zeidi – Republic of Iraq
Dr. Saif Al-Suwaidi - Republic of Turkey
Dr. Abdulwahid Al-Husseini - Kingdom of Morocco
Dr. Maryam Qais - Republic of Turkey
Dr. Essam Mshahit - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Dr. Fatima Issa Mohamed - United Arab Emirates
Mr. Muad Ahmed Al-Hakim - Malaysia