Young Arab Leaders and Junior Achievements Sign MOU to Boost Leadership Development and Entrepreneurship

Young Arab Leaders and Junior Achievements Sign MOU to Boost Leadership Development and Entrepreneurship
Initiative Sponsored by Al Ahli Group and Nakheel


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The Young Arab Leaders (YAL) UAE chapter, the foremost development platform for business, public sector and civil society leaders in the Middle East, announced today the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Junior Achievements Argentina (JAA), a non-profit educational organization aiming to educate and infuse young people with true entrepreneurial spirit.

Under the agreement, 10 Arab youth will travel to Argentina to benefit from the Junior Achievement Company programme. The students will be guided by a role model from the local business community to help them conceptualise and operate an actual business enterprise.

Al Ahli Group, a leading UAE-based multi-disciplined organization, and Nakheel, a Dubai World company and one of the largest and most innovative private real estate developers in the region, are sponsoring the initiative that is set to boost leadership development and entrepreneurship among the Arab youth.

Mohammad Khammas, Vice-Chairman of YAL-UAE Chapter and CEO of Al Ahli Group said: “The Arab region boasts a unique and massive resource that is still untapped – its youth.

While the region has some of the most ancient civilizations in the world, Arabs themselves include the largest number of young people of any region, with the age structure of the population being significantly younger than the global average. Along with the fastest growing labour force, Arab countries possess an enviable ‘demographic gift’. It is absolutely imperative that we leverage this potential for the future of our economic development.

”YAL’s collaboration with Junior Achievement Argentina is a step towards achieving our goal to create a pool of Arab entrepreneurs that will be comparable to the best in the world. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Nakheel for supporting this initiative”
The 10 Arab students selected for the experiential three-phased JAA programme will participate in academic, cultural, social and recreational activities that offer high value on both personal and professional levels.

In the first week, students will mingle with nearly 600 youth from all over the world and gain exposure through lectures, competitions, workshops, group activities and sports. They will also attend the International Forum of Entrepreneurs (FIE) 2008 that will be held at Cordoba Hills in Argentina, where participants will acquire rich lessons on values, attitudes and tools to improve their personal skills as well as shape themselves as key enablers for the sustainable transformation of their communities.

In week two, the Arab students will join 10 Argentinean students and will be trained by specialists in five content areas of strategic planning, marketing, international logistics, production and costs. They will also visit a select number of high performing local companies in Argentina such as dairy farming, agricultural machinery, horticultural gardens, grains and oilseeds, cold storages and motor vehicles parts and body assemblies.

In the final week, participants will begin to apply their acquired learning tools to the design of their own business project. Assisted by specially assigned mentors, the students will provide a brief account of their respective projects to the rest of the students and members of JAA and YAL.

Manal Shaheen, Director of Marketing and Sales at Nakheel said: “Opportunities for practical and sector-specific entrepreneurship training are virtually non-existent or too costly for Arab youth. There are also few initiatives, which match successful business mentors with entrepreneurs in urgent need of specialized guidance and linkages to business networks to succeed as startups or to mature into SMEs.

“Nakheel recognizes the need for such initiatives in the Arab world and is keen on providing the Arab youth with such talent enabling opportunities”, she added.
Capping the value intensive programme, an award ceremony recognizing the best business model will be held in Dubai in October 2008, amidst selected business owners and proponents of youth development.