Usman Speen Jan thanks UAE for humanitarian efforts in Afghanistan
As Afghanistan bleeds and the world watches in horror, Usman Speen Jan hopes his accomplishments can bring a glimmer of hope and positivity to his compatriots living in the UAE as well as the country.
Born and raised in Dubai, the 25-year-old was awarded the United Arab Emirates Golden Visa in the outstanding student category, making him perhaps the only Afghan student to have been granted the 10-year visa.
Usman received the Golden Visa after graduating from UAE University with a cumulative GPA of 3.99 / 4 in accounting.
And while it was a happy moment, it was kind of a bittersweet feeling for Usman, especially with what happened in Afghanistan.
“To be honest, I didn’t expect to get it so quickly, but the whole process only took 10 days. It’s amazing to receive the Golden Visa from United Arab Emirates, ”Usman said Khaleej Times.
“Still, feelings are mixed as it is really sad to see what is happening in Afghanistan right now, the heartbreaking scenes at the airport and the news of the attack that happened yesterday (Thursday) and the dozens were in the waste water channel, it was really, really hard to see.
“But I want my news (Golden Visa) to give some hope to the Afghans who live here and shed some light on some positive aspects of Afghanistan. At the end of the day, it’s about the locals, the politics can be, you know, good or bad, but it’s the people that matter most, ”he added.
In 2019, Usman received the Future Makers Award, one of the University’s prestigious awards, with him surpassing 18,000 students, to win the award with the highest academic achievement. He also won a cash prize of 10,000 Dh as well as a summer program in the United States, where the University of the United Arab Emirates collaborated with the George Washington University School of Business. Usman completed the Summer Program on “Emerging Topics in Leadership and Innovation” in Washington DC and New York.
During the program, Usman was able to visit Congress, the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Washington DC, and organizations such as the World Bank and the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
Indeed, Usman’s story is fascinating as his father, originally from Khost province, fled the country during the Afghan-Soviet War in 1986 and moved to Pakistan before arriving in the United Arab Emirates to work as worker.
“I have never been to Afghanistan. I was born here in 1996 when the Taliban took power. My father’s journey started as a worker because he was uneducated – he studied until the sixth grade. And after the Soviets arrived, he couldn’t continue his education and was forced to move to Pakistan, then came to the UAE at the age of 18, with my grandfather. He then set up his own construction company. We have 12 siblings and my dad made sure we were well educated, ”said Usman, who was awarded a scholarship at the University of the United Arab Emirates.
Usman is also grateful to the UAE for their humanitarian efforts in Afghanistan and hopes he can repay it by serving the UAE.
“The UAE’s efforts to help Afghanistan are not new and go back a long way. The UAE has always lent a hand to the citizens of Afghanistan and I want to thank them for this wonderful gesture and I hope they will continue to offer help and support, ”he said.
“It is a wonderful chance for me to give back to this wonderful country which has given me so much. And I considered it a home because I couldn’t go back to my country, ”Usman said.
James jose
