Emirates Foundation, an independent philanthropic organisation set up by the Abu Dhabi Government to facilitate public-private partnerships for empowering youth across the UAE and the National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) signed a partnership agreement in support of the Foundation's youth development programmes.

Under the three-year agreement signed by Mohanna Al Muhairi, Chief Operations Officer at the Emirates Foundation, and Abdulla M S AbdulRaheem, NBAD's Deputy Group CEO, NBAD will provide a platform for the two parties to learn, share and exchange knowledge and expertise around youth development.

NBAD will commit AED1.5 million in support of the Foundation's initiatives. The agreement, which also provides financial support and knowledge-sharing technical support, is in line with the Foundation's business philanthropy model, which seeks to develop long-term programmes, designed to make positive, sustainable impact in the lives of UAE youth.

A major emphasis of the agreement is on boosting Emirates Foundation's efforts to make philanthropy a deeply rooted culture and encourage stronger involvement of the UAE youth in the socioeconomic development process.

Clare Woodcraft-Scott, CEO of Emirates Foundation, said: 'We are pleased to have NBAD on board as a gold partner. Our partnership is a critical part of our model of Venture Philanthropy which focuses on sustainable solutions to social challenges. Apart from finance, our partnership with the private sector gives us access to technical input and also provides opportunities for employee engagement allowing us to connect our youth directly to the market.'

'We look forward to working with NBAD and engaging their teams in our programmes. We see a lot of benefits for both organisations, particularly in terms of introducing our youth to the banking industry and providing them with essential relevant skills. And of course we would want to make the unique banking know-how of NBAD's teams available to a wider base of our youth population - which is at the heart of our mission.'

The agreement carries a host of benefits for NBAD, including the opportunity to engage its employees in a variety of volunteering, training, and skill-building programmes, such as 'Esref Sah', 'Takatof', 'Kafaat', and 'Think science'. Emirates Foundation will be able to give its broad base of youth opportunities access to hands-on experience from NBAD.

Abdulla M S AbdulRaheem, NBAD's Deputy Group CEO, said: 'We are pleased to partner with Emirates Foundation in support of the Foundation's vision to empower the UAE youth and help them achieve their potential and contribute to their nation.'

He added: 'At NBAD, we are committed to encouraging our employees to engage in all the noble initiatives of Emirates Foundation. We would like to motivate them to volunteer, participate and give back to society. At the same time, we are focused on sharing our expertise with the UAE youth.'

On his part, Mohanna Al Muhairi, Chief Operations Officer at the Emirates Foundation, said: 'This agreement represents a great achievement in terms of building long-term partnerships with the private sector; particularly with the banking sector, and leveraging such partnerships in promoting the skills of our young people and unleashing their potential.'

'NBAD stands out as a leading UAE banking institution with a proven track record in emiratisation and empowerment of the UAE youth and social development. We hope our partnership will enable us to make this expertise and resources accessible to our ambitious youth,' he added.

Al Muhairi concluded by encouraging other banking institutions to follow in the footsteps of NBAD and support the Foundation in training and empowering local Emirati nationals to enter the work force and lead within the different sectors and industries.'

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