Her Highness Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak, Chairperson of the UAE General Women\'s Union and Supreme Chairperson of the Family Development Foundation, was named the distinguished personality of the year for her rich contributions to education. She was named by the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Distinguished Academic Performance in its 14th edition. A total of 182 top achievers in education were bestowed with the Hamdan Bin Rashid Award during a special ceremony yesterday in Dubai Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, gave a special tribute to Shaikha Fatima, lauding her selection as the personality of the year. Shaikh Hamdan praised her for her initiatives in the field of women\'s education and for her leading role in empowering Emirati women to be in an equal footing with her male counterpart and participating in the comprehensive development of the country. Categories Dr Maitha Salem Al Shamsi, Minister of State, received the honour on behalf of Shaikha Fatima. The award categories include distinguished students, teachers, social workers, projects, scientific innovation, educational research and school administration, in its quest to improve the quality of the educational system and encourage initiatives, innovation and excellence in all literary and scientific domains.