Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan Al Nahyan

A pioneering UAE leader driving youth empowerment and space exploration initiatives

Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan Al Nahyan is a visionary Emirati leader making significant impacts through her roles as Minister of Youth and head of the UAE Space Agency. Born in 1991, she became the youngest minister in the UAE government at age 25, leading initiatives like the UAE Youth Council which engages over 10,000 young professionals. Her leadership in the Ministry of Community Development transformed national policies regarding youth entrepreneurship and digital literacy programs.

In space exploration, she spearheaded the UAE Astronaut Programme, sending the first Arab woman to space (Nora AlMatrooshi) aboard SpaceX Crew-5 in 2022. She also chairs the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre's education committee, creating Mars Science City - a $135M facility training future astronauts and scientists. Her global advocacy includes co-founding the Youth4Space initiative, connecting 50+ countries in STEM education.

Key innovations include the National Youth Strategy 2031 (allocating AED 10B for youth startups) and UAE Youth Digital Accelerator program. Her TED Talk 'The Future is Written by the Youth' has over 2M views. Shamma's work bridges cultural traditions with modern technology, exemplified through her social media campaigns reaching 5M+ followers.