Dr Shihab Ghanem
Dr. Shihab Ghanem is a UAE citizen living in Dubai. He has a double degree in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering from Aberdeen University, Scotland, 1964 and a Master’s in Water Resource Engineering from Roorkee University, India, 1975. Dr. Ghanem also has a Doctorate in Economics from Cardiff University, Wales, 1989 and an Honorary Doctorate in Literature from Soka University, Tokyo, 2015.
He has published about 75 books in Arabic and English, including 19 books of Arabic verse and 30 collections of translated verse, 13 of which are from Arabic to English. Several of his poems have been translated into 19 languages. There are more than 20 songs by various singers including Sami Yousuf, based on his poems.
He is the recipient of about 30 awards including –
- The first prize for poetry in the UAE, 1984
- Rashid Award for Scientific Excellence, 1989
- Book prize from the Ruler of Sharjah for poetry translation, 2003 and 2007
- Tagore Peace Award 2012
- World Poetry Society Intercontinental Poetry Award, Chennai, 2013
- UAE Cultural Personality of the Year
- Al-Owais Creativity Awards, 2013
- Honoured by Al-Ithnainiah, Jeddah, 2013
- GALA Award, 2013
- Cultural Personality of the Year Award- Al-Owais Creativity awards, 2013
- World Poetry Society Intercontinental Award, Chennai, 2013
He is currently retired after having served as the Director of Engineering at Dubai Ports & Jebel Ali Free Zone and Managing Director of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Technology Park, Dubai.
