The College of Business and Economics at United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) organized on Tuesday 16 October 2018, a session titled ‘Blockchain Use Cases in Higher Education’ attended by a number of students and faculty members from different colleges. The lecture was presented by analysts and experts in Blockchain Technology from Taibah Valley Company of Taibah University, KSA.

Stressing the importance of blockchain in education, particularly in higher education, Dr. Rashid Al Zahmi, Chair of the UAEU Business Administration Department, explained that the lecture aimed to look at the usage of this technology and how it helps students in certifying documents, certifications and academic programs. It also allows for easy validation and extraction of documents within few seconds.

“The implementation of this technology greatly helps reduce the burden and expenses on governments. UAE is interested in this technology and has adopted a strategy to use database technology blockchain for half of the government transactions by 2021. Dubai had previously set up the Global Blockchain Council to enhance using blockchain in areas like financial systems, commercial records, health system and civil registration.”

Dr. Al Zahmi praised the expertise of the speakers: Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Olayan, CEO of Taibah Valley, Dr. Walaa Al-Harthy, Dr. Arwa Al-Thaqafi and Eng. Amran Javed, possessing wide experience in applying this technology, which was demonstrated through their presentations of latest developments and research on blockchain and the experiences of different countries with applying this technology.

“I benefited a lot from attending this lecture, especially that my thesis discusses the lawfulness and regulations of the UAE systems, which blockchain is one of them,” said Hessa Al-Kaabi, a College of Law student.

One of the most important features of blockchain is that it provides transparency for individuals and organizations, due to fact that blockchain is resistant to modification of the data, which helps in reducing forgery.