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28 March 2024

Nine young ladies from Sharjah to climb Africa’s highest mountain

Published
By Wam

Nine young ladies from Sharjah, all under 18, will embark on one of the world’s most daring mountain adventure in late August.

It is the second time Sajaya Young Ladies of Sharjah, SYL, is organising a mountaineering expedition. This time they will trek to Africa’s highest mountain Kilimanjaro in a bid to instil strong physical and mental capabilities in their young members.

The nine members of the Rubu’ Qarn Foundation for Creating Leaders and Innovators, a subsidiary of SYL, will be undertaking this historic climb from 21st to 31st August.

Around the same time last year, the first group of SYL climbers successfully summited the highest peak in the Atlas range, Mount Toubkal in Morocco. Among the climbers was 13-year-old Asma Al Qaidi, who became the youngest Emirati female to have achieved such a feat.

As part of a rigorous training programme designed for the upcoming 10-day climb, SYL brought in successful mountaineers to share first-hand experiences to enrich the young ladies’ knowledge about the terrain and environmental conditions they will be navigating during the climb, and boost their confidence and leadership skills.

These talks have been presented by the region’s renowned mountaineering experts including Sultan Al Obaidli from Sharjah Sports Council, SSC; Emirati Engineer Adnan Abdulrahman, who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro as part of the Climate Heroes Team in 2017; and an Abu Dhabi Police team who successfully scaled the African peak in 2018.

Sheikha Aisha Khalid Al Qasimi, Director of SYL, said that these one-to-one sessions had played a key role in preparing the group with a wealth of first-hand insights about what to expect and how to overcome possible obstacles. She also lauded the cooperation and support of SSC, and thanked their Secretary General Issa Hilal Al Hazami for his presence at the SSC session.

The climb is supported by Sharjah Police Academy as logistics sponsor; Tilal Properties, silver sponsor; Sharjah Sports Council ,bronze sponsor; and Sharjah Broadcasting Authority, official media sponsor.

The activity falls under SYL’s adventure club, founded in 2016 with the slogan ‘To the Furthest Limit’ that promotes physical and mental endurance, teamwork, leadership and independence among the women.