The Third Princess Haya Award for Special Education will be unveiled on Tuesday in an official ceremony at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai. The award is held under the patronage of Princess Haya Bint Al Hussain, wife of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Mohammad Al Emadi, Head of the Executive Committee, said that a total of 169 applications have been received by the panel from various special education centres in the UAE, and other nations from the GCC region. The awards will be given to honour excellence in four main categories: Specialist Excellence, Corporate Social Responsibility Excellence, Family Excellence and Institutional Excellence. First of its kind The Princess Haya Award for Special Education was launched in November 2008 as the first initiative of its kind in the region. It recognises the best individuals in the special needs sector, through various categories, based on high international standards. The initiative also aims to encourage people, working with individuals with special needs, to excel and set higher service standards in all fields of special education.