Mohammed Hasan Alwan became executive head of the newly established Literature, Translation and Publishing Commission this month. In his new mission, Alwan will assume the responsibility of organizing, developing and regulating the literature, translation and publishing sector by supporting practitioners and associates. Moreover, he will be responsible for promoting investments in fields related to the department’s specializations, and for encouraging individuals, institutions and companies to produce and develop content in the sector. Alwan received his bachelor’s degree in computer information systems from King Saud University, Riyadh, in 2002. He attained his master’s in business administration in 2008 from the University of Portland in the US. He earned his Ph.D. in international marketing in 2016 from Carleton University in Canada. Alwan served as relationship manager at Samba Financial Group from October 2003 to January 2006. In August 2008, he joined Nasser Al-Nabit and Sons Ltd. Liability Co. as a board member, and held the position of managing director until August 2015. Alwan has published six books to date: “Saqf Elkefaya” (2002), “Sophia” (2004), “Touq Altahara” (2007), “Al-Qundus” (2011), “Migration: Theories and Key Factors” (2014) and “A Small Death” (2016). He won $50,000 in the International Prize for Arabic Fiction for “A Small Death,” his fictional account of the life of Sunni scholar Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi. Alwan’s Twitter handle is @m_alwan.