Culture & Education | Monday 10 December, 2018 10:04 am |

The Pearl Initiative, a business-led non-profit promoting corporate accountability in the Gulf region, today entered into a partnership with the Young Arab Leaders (YAL) to support young business leaders in building a more sustainable business ecosystem in the region.

The Head of Programmes at the Pearl Initiative, Yasmine Omari, and the Chairwoman of YAL, Muna Al Gurg, signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) as both parties seek to jointly promote mentorship, speaking opportunities, community outreach events, network creation, and youth empowerment among business leaders, entrepreneurs, and students in the Gulf Region.

Commenting on the agreement, Omari said: "There is a real desire from our stakeholders to be engaging the wider business ecosystem and for us to increase the impact that we are making in the Region. We are committed to engaging with regional businesses and student communities to promote the highest standards in corporate governance, accountability, and transparency.”

She added: “With youth under the age of 25 representing almost 50 per cent of the population in the Gulf region, focus on their participation is more crucial than ever. The agreement will serve as a platform to exchange knowledge and best practices surrounding corporate governance practices that will prove invaluable to the next generation of leaders.”

Al Gurg commented: “Empowering the next generation of leaders is a central element of YAL's mission. The signing of this agreement demonstrates YAL’s commitment to shaping a future generation of leaders and business professionals by offering access to our network, development events and programmes. This is an exciting collaboration for YAL, the Pearl Initiative, and all our stakeholders.”

The partnership aligns with the Pearl Initiative’s objective to partner with regional organisations to further raise the awareness of the regional youth as well as regional organisations on the positive impact of sustainable business practices.

YAL, an independent, nonprofit organization focuses on empowering the next generation of leaders in the Arab world by developing & bringing together a strong network of business leaders and launching collaborative & educational initiatives to ensure young Arab entrepreneurs get the support, guidance and opportunities they need to succeed.

Founded in 2010, Pearl Initiative develops programmes and publishes regional research reports and case studies, with aims to influence the regional business and student community towards implementing higher standards of corporate governance within the Gulf region.