Singapore names ‘National Flower of the Republic’

Singapore has named a rare kind of Orchid flower in the National Botanic Gardens in Singapore after H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, the Mother of the UAE, as an example of the Arab woman, and as an appreciation for the exceptional humanitarian contributions of Her Highness, which transcends national and regional borders, and extends to the international.

The flower named after H.H. Sheikha Fatima represents the "National Flower of the Republic of Singapore", and was chosen carefully from numerous rare species, a tradition followed by Singapore for visiting national presidents and senior international personalities who have strong ties with the Republic of Singapore.

The official ceremonies were held with the attendance of H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak and her delegation, as well as the wife of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Singapore, and Umej Singh, Officer of the Middle East and North African Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Singapore, and Mohammed Omar Abdullah Belfaqeeh, UAE Ambassador to Singapore.

The Singapore Botanic Gardens was established in 1859 in a space of 74 hectares, and in December 2012 the garden was included by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) on its list of World Heritage Sites.