Shamma Al Mazrui

Shamma bint Suhail Faris Al Mazrui (born 1993) is an Emirati politician who currently serves as Minister of State for Youth Affairs in the United Arab Emirates. In February 2016, she became the youngest government minister in the world.

Early life and education

Al Mazrui was born on 22 February 1993 in Abu Dhabi. She is the daughter of Suhail Faris Ghanim Ateish Al Mazrui, Chairman of Dubai Investments Board of Directors. Her twin brother Ahmed Suhail Faris Al Mazrui is the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, 2017 Sword of Honor.

Al Mazrui is an alumna of The International School of Choueifat, Abu Dhabi, Class of 2010.

Al Mazrui has a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from New York University Abu Dhabi. She obtained her Masters of Public Policy with distinction from the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford in 2015. She was the UAE's first Rhodes scholar. Al Mazrui is fluent in Arabic, English, French and Chinese.

Career

Al Mazrui worked in private equity in an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund and as a public policy analyst at the UAE Mission to the United Nations. She also worked as an intern at the UAE Embassy in Washington D.C.

Al Mazrui was appointed by Prime Minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum as Minister of State for Youth Affairs in February 2016 at age 22, making her the youngest member of the UAE cabinet and the youngest government minister in the world. She was appointed after Al Maktoum tweeted asking the UAE's universities to nominate a young person for the role. She is one of eight women in the twenty-nine member Cabinet.

Al Mazrui presides over the National Youth Council, which brings together young professionals from a variety of backgrounds to represent the affairs of youth to the government. She has also established "youth circles" which allow young people to register to participate in consultative meetings to explore significant issues such as climate change and education.

In August 2016, Al Mazrui used Twitter to ask young UAE citizens to participate in a "National Programme for the Values of Emirati Youth". In September 2016, she spoke about the role of youth in the Middle East at a think tank in Washington DC organised by the Atlantic Council.

Institutional oversight

Al Mazrui was appointed as Chair of the Special Olympics UAE Board in 2017 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of the United Arab Emirates. She is also the Vice Chair of the Community and Legacy Committee of the UAE Special Olympics World Games (2019).

Al Mazrui is a Board Member of the Emirates Foundation for Youth Development, an independent-philanthropic body which assists in public and private sector partnerships. She is also a member of the Education and Human Resources Council, which is chaired by Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

Al Mazrui serves as a member on the Higher National Committee of the Year of Zayed, 2018 and the Higher National Council of the Year of Giving (2017).

Al Mazrui was named as one of the Committee members that will oversee the UAE's Year Of Tolerance, 2019

Awards and honours

• Rhodes Scholarship 2014
• Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Distinction Award (2015)
• Coutts Future Leader Award (2015)