MANAMA — In a pioneering move to blend cyber-safety with modern youth culture, the Kingdom’s benchmark anti-violence and addiction initiative has officially moved into the digital metaverse.
His Excellency Sheikh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior for Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs and Chairman of the “Ma’an” (Together) Committee for Combating Violence and Addiction, officially launched the “Ma’an” Digital Summer Program during a high-level visit to the Ma’an Center for Research and Training.
The launch took place alongside Mr. Ali Ahmed Amini, Director of the Crime Prevention Department and Director of the “Ma’an” Program, along with key executive stakeholders.
At the heart of this summer’s curriculum is a specialized framework built within Roblox, one of the world’s most popular digital gaming environments for young people. Rather than steering children away from virtual spaces, the program directly enters them to build early security awareness and foster positive behaviors through simulation and experiential learning.
During his tour, H.E. Sheikh Hisham was briefed on the specific training phases designed to help students navigate real-world technological challenges. The interactive digital environment targets several core developmental milestones, focusing heavily on virtual responsibility to help youth recognize and deal safely with online risks. It also emphasizes social architecture to build foundational values of teamwork, peer respect, and ethical decision-making, while driving cognitive expansion by encouraging creative problem-solving through interactive simulation challenges.
“Employing interactive technologies and game-based learning represents a vital step forward in our prevention toolkit. By modernizing our awareness programs to match the technological shifts of the new generation, we strengthen the essential partnership between our security establishment and civil society.”— H.E. Sheikh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa
The “Ma’an” Digital Summer Program marks an operational pivot toward highly scalable, tech-driven community outreach. By transforming traditional security advice into interactive gaming content, the initiative ensures maximum engagement from Bahraini youth who natively inhabit these tech spaces.
Concluding his visit, His Excellency praised the research and training teams for executing forward-thinking ideas that challenge conventional awareness methods, emphasizing that the future of social defense relies entirely on combining deep societal knowledge with direct digital interaction.