News

Emirates Post Issues Stamp Set Celebrating AI In UAE Schools

The release coincides with the rollout of artificial intelligence as a compulsory subject across public schools from kindergarten to Grade 12.

Published

8 months ago

January 6, 2026

Nour Nasir

Emirates Post

Emirates Post has issued a commemorative stamp set to mark the introduction of artificial intelligence as a mandatory subject in the UAE’s national school curriculum.

The release aligns with the nationwide rollout of AI education across government schools for the 2025–2026 academic year, covering students from kindergarten through Grade 12. The policy embeds AI into core learning as the country pushes to align education with its digital transformation agenda.

Launched under the banner “Year of Community – Education through Artificial Intelligence”, the four-stamp collection depicts technology-enabled classrooms. Students are shown interacting with smart devices, robotics and drones, reflecting the applied focus of the curriculum rather than abstract theory.

Education authorities have positioned the program around practical use and ethical awareness, aiming to equip students with problem-solving skills and the ability to engage responsibly with fast-moving technologies. The approach is intended to strengthen human capital as AI adoption accelerates across the economy.

Also Read: Syria Rolls Out First National Tourism Discount Card

Emirates Post said the issue forms part of its role in recording major milestones in the UAE’s development, using stamps to reflect shifts in public policy and national priorities. The classroom rollout also supports the country’s bid to position itself as a global technology hub, as regional competition intensifies to build advanced digital skills from an early age.

The stamp collection is available at National Network for Logistics (NXN) branches and through the Emirates Post online store.

Related Topics:Artificial Intelligence United Arab Emirates

Up Next

Deliverect Rolls Out Self-Order Kiosks Across MENA

Don't Miss

Belkin Launches Wireless HDMI Adapter With 131-Foot Range

Click to comment

News

Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon

Foreign visitors will be the first users to benefit, but whether Syria’s own banks and cardholders follow is still an open question.

Published

2 weeks ago

August 27, 2026

Dana Saadeh

visa's return to syria starts with a test and a bank in lebanon

Visa is returning to Syria. Its first live international card transaction in the country was a test rather than a launch, and the milestone event ran through a Lebanese bank.

The acquirer (the bank on the merchant’s side of a card payment) was Fransabank Lebanon, with Paymera as the other named partner. Nadim Moujaes, who heads a Fransabank Group subsidiary, describes the test as both the culmination of “longstanding efforts to link Syria back to international payment networks” and “the first step in a larger path”.

Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa makes the first electronic payment in Syria using a @Visa card at a store in Damascus, following the lifting of US sanctions on Syria. pic.twitter.com/lpAN7nQ6Fc

— Tech Magazine (@TechMGZN) August 27, 2026

“We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria,” says Leila Serhan, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan region. Although a significant first step, that plan doesn’t come with a hard date for when a visitor’s card will work normally.

Mohammed Safwat Raslan, governor of the Central Bank of Syria, says the test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and that maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential. Serhan likewise stresses that Visa has worked within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements. For a test transaction, it seems there was a great deal of attention paid to the rules, with the entire operation being carefully managed.

Also Read: Lebanon’s 5G Era Begins With 150 Stations And A $1M Budget

The test is the latest step in a sequence that began in December 2025, when Visa announced a strategic roadmap to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy. In February 2026 it hosted its first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus and, the same month, signed an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco.

Michel Kattouah, Paymera’s CEO, called the test “the return of international card acceptance,” but while that’s positive news, there’s no word yet on when a Syrian bank will issue a Visa card to a Syrian customer.