Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai, has honored the winners of the 28th Dubai International Holy Quran Awards (DIHQA). In this grand ceremony organized on the evening of Tuesday 3 March 2026, 5,618 participants from 105 countries around the world had presented their claims. This year’s competition was historic in many ways as it introduced a separate category for women and a voting system for the public for the first time.
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List of winners and prize money
This year the total prize money of the competition was kept at more than 12 million dirhams i.e. about 3.27 million dollars. It is one of the most expensive competitions of its kind worldwide. Karar Laith Saad of Iraq won the first position in the boys category and Jana Ihab Ramadan of Egypt won the first position in the girls category.
Place Boys Category (Name/Country) Girls Category (Name/Country) Prize Money 1st Place Karar Laith Saad (Iraq) Jana Ihab Ramadan (Egypt) $1,000,000 USD 2nd Place Omar Ali Awed (Egypt) Aisha Al-Rumai (Indonesia) $100,000 USD 3rd Place Abdullah Faisal Al-Buti (Kuwait) Sarah Abdul Karim Al-Hallaq (Syria) $50,000 USD
Egypt’s late Sheikh Mahmoud Khalil al-Hussari was honored as ‘International Quranic Personality of the Year’ and his family was awarded a sum of $1 million.
Main rules and procedure for joining the competition
To participate in the Dubai International Holy Quran Award, the organizers had set some strict rules which were mandatory to follow. On the basis of these rules, the best talents from all over the world were selected.
Age Limit: All children participating in the competition must be under 16 years of age.
Ability: The participant must memorize the entire Quran and master the rules of Tajweed.
Selection Process: First a 3 minute video submission was taken followed by remote testing and finally the final test in Dubai.
Voting: This time the winner of the ‘Most Beautiful Text’ category was decided through global public voting on the official website.
The final match of the competition took place at Majlis Um Suqaim, Dubai. Sheikh Mohammed congratulated the winners, saying that serving the Quran is the greatest honor and that these children are ambassadors of peace and tolerance around the world.
