DUBAI, United Arab Emirates--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 5, 2026--
In response to requests from a large number of participants, the UAE Water Aid Foundation (Suqia UAE) has extended the submission deadline for the fifth cycle of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Water Award to 30 September 2026. The extension aims to enable the widest possible participation from applicants around the world.
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Launched by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and overseen by Suqia UAE under the umbrella of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, the award supports research and development efforts to develop sustainable solutions to address the global water crisis using renewable energy. It aims to tackle water scarcity challenges and improve access to safe water for less developed communities worldwide.
The fifth cycle of the award places greater emphasis on digital transformation, prioritising projects that utilise artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to enhance proactive monitoring and improve operational efficiency. This approach underscores the award’s commitment to addressing human needs while keeping pace with global technological advancements.
With a total prize value of USD 1 million, the award comprises four main categories: the Innovative Projects Award, the Innovative Research and Development Award, the Innovative Individual Award and the Innovative Crisis Solutions Award. The largest share, amounting to USD 540,000, is allocated to the Innovative Projects Award, comprising USD 300,000 for large projects and USD 240,000 for small projects. The Innovative Research and Development Award totals USD 400,000, divided equally between national and international institutions. Meanwhile, the Innovative Individual Award offers USD 40,000, split evenly between the Distinguished Researcher Award and the Youth Award, with USD 20,000 allocated to the Innovative Crisis Solutions Award.
Over the last four cycles, the award recognised 43 winners from 26 countries for their pioneering work in water production, desalination and purification. Millions of people have benefited from the fourth cycle’s winning projects, which have been implemented in many countries, including Tunisia, Egypt, Botswana, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Côte d’Ivoire, Lebanon, Syria, Colombia, Venezuela, Haiti, Turkey, Bangladesh, Myanmar, the Philippines, Fiji, Ukraine, Georgia and Indonesia.
Applications can be submitted via https://www.mbrwateraward.ae/en/awards and inquiries can be sent to award@suqia.ae.
*Source:AETOSWire
Submission deadline for 5th cycle of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Water Award extended to 30 September 2026 (Photo: AETOSWire)
BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania’s pro-European coalition collapsed Tuesday after lawmakers voted against Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, less than a year after he was sworn in, triggering fresh turmoil in the European country.
The no-confidence vote was a blow to Bolojan, who came to power with the aim of ending one of Romania’s worst political crises in its post-communist history.
The leftist Social Democratic Party, or PSD, and the hard-right opposition Alliance for the Unity of Romanians party, or AUR, jointly submitted the motion to Parliament on April 28. PSD withdrew from the coalition last month. On Tuesday, 281 lawmakers voted in favor and four voted against.
Lawmakers from Bolojan’s center-right National Liberal Party, or PNL, and coalition partners, Save Romania Union party and the small ethnic Hungarian UDMR party, abstained.
Romania has faced a long period of instability after the annulment of a presidential election in December 2024. The country has also grappled with one of the highest budget deficits in the European Union, rampant inflation, and a technical recession. In June, when the coalition was voted in, it pledged to reduce the budget deficit, marking it a top priority.
The PSD had often found itself at loggerheads with Bolojan over austerity measures, including tax hikes, public-sector wage and pension freezes, and cuts to state spending and public administration jobs.
Last week, the party accused Bolojan of “failing to implement any genuine reform” in his 10 months leading the government, and said Romania needs a leader who is “capable of collaboration.” Bolojan said that he took tough but necessary fiscal measures that effectively “regained the trust of the markets in the Romanian government.”
Bolojan also called the no-confidence motion “cynical and artificial” and said before the vote that it “seems to be written by people who were not in government every day and did not participate in all the decisions.”
“It is cynical, because it does not take into account the context in which we find ourselves,” he said. “I assumed the position of prime minister, being aware that it comes with enormous pressure and that I would not receive applause from the citizens. But I chose to do what was urgent and necessary for our country.”
The leftist party's president, Sorin Grindeanu, said Bolojan should appoint an interim prime minister until one is voted into office by lawmakers. He also said he expected Romanian President Nicusor Dan to consult PSD.
“I would like us to quickly find a solution … together with the other parties and move forward,” Grindeanu said. “All options are open.”
The secretary-general of Bolojan's party, Dan Motreanu, posted on social media, saying PSD and AUR “have a duty to take over the government, to come up with a prime minister candidate and a clear program,” accusing the two parties of “playing political theater.”
“You cannot overthrow a government and then run away from accountability,” Motreanu wrote, adding that “any signal of political chaos” negatively affects the country's economy and people.
The PSD would be needed to form a pro-European parliamentary majority. The leftist party has previously ruled out forming a government with AUR, whose leader, George Simion, said Tuesday that voters had “supported and wanted water, food, energy,” but had “received taxes, war and poverty.”
Cristian Andrei, a Bucharest-based political consultant, said the crisis will likely lead to a stalemate, since “no one has a majority, or a coalition, and it will take the president ... weeks to find such a majority and name a new prime minister, prolonging the indecision.”
“At this moment, there are two tentative options for a new Cabinet, both difficult to achieve; either a reshuffled coalition, without Bolojan, in the same formation ... or a minority Cabinet, rather led by PSD and satellites from populist parties, like AUR, or other small groups,” he said. “A PSD-AUR official Cabinet is not a possibility today because the president will not endorse it.”
The prime ministerial position was set to be rotated in 2027 from Bolojan to a PSD premier as part of a power-sharing agreement. A general election is scheduled for 2028.
McGrath reported from Leamington Spa, England.
Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan addresses a parliament session ahead of a no confidence vote in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan addresses a parliament session ahead of a no confidence vote in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan reacts during a parliament session ahead of a no confidence vote in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Romanian lawmakers stand during the anthem ahead of a no confidence vote against Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan's government in Romania's parliament in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan arrives at a parliament session ahead of a no confidence vote in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
