- Opening Keynote Address from Minister of Education H.E Hussain Ibrahim Al Hammadi Looked at Educating & Empowering the Youth of the Future
- Government Leaders, U.N. Representatives, Captains of Industry & Academics Commit To Cross-Sector Future Proofing Agenda
Abu Dhabi, UAE – 20th September, 2021: A summit supported by some of the best minds across a range of public and private sector entities, international policymakers, and academia opens in Abu Dhabi today with UAE youth empowerment top of the agenda.
Over 30 experts will address the focused Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Economy Summit, powered by ADGM Academy, running until Tuesday night (September 21) at the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) Authority’s Building, on Al Maryah Island, with a precision focus to thrash out a road map to bridging cross-sector gaps and opening innovation, technology and research and development (R&D) opportunities for the country’s youth.
During his keynote address, His Excellency Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi, UAE Minister of Education, stressed that the Summit is a vital platform due to its association with youth, development plans, the knowledge economy and the process of preparing the next qualified and skilled generations.
H. E. Al Hammadi pointed out that this comes in line with the recently announced “Projects of the 50” initiative under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE. He said; “The initiative affirms the focus on education, specialized training and building youth skills as a national priority to supply the labor market with competencies by relying on the private sector as a major national partner in the development process.”
H. E. Al Hammadi also emphasized the essential role of innovation and creativity for all academic disciplines; “Given the need for students of all ages to learn through creativity and knowledge creation to understand information and enrich the educational experience, the Ministry of Education has been developing curricula that promote the concept of creativity and innovation, as well as providing an environment that encourages students to communicate and evolve.”
High profile speakers to address the anticipated audience of more than 200 policymakers, visionary public sector leaders, and C-suite executives include H.E Hussain Ibrahim Al Hammadi, the UAE Education Minister; H.E Dr Mubarak AlShamsi, Director General, ACTVET; Hamed Al Mazrouei, COO, ADGM; Mustafa El Rafy, Senior V.P. Human Capital, Majed Al Futtaim Retail; Prof. Waqar Ahmed, Chancellor, Abu Dhabi University; Dr. Mariet Westermann, Vice-Chancellor and CEO, NYU Abu Dhabi; Asgar Rangoonwala, Senior V.P. Emerging Markets, Johnson & Johnson and Dr. Dena Assaf, the U.N.’s Resident Co-ordinator for the UAE.
Other leading organisations represented include the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, Etihad Aviation Group, Etisalat, du, Tanfeeth, Schneider Electric and Jacobs.
The powerful speaker and panel platforms will debate over 19 future defining sessions aimed at furthering industry and academia collaboration. Together they will tackle issues including Empowering Youth to Shape the Future through Innovation and Technology; The Government’s Role in Supporting and Empowering Young Minds and Talent; The Role of Science, Technology, and Innovation in Transforming UAE into a Knowledge-Based Economy.
The Summit is a crucially timely initiative according to His Excellency Mohamed Helal Al Mheiri, Director General, Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which is supporting the event.
“Our youth are our future, and we must empower their possibilities. It should be borne in mind that the Abu Dhabi Government alone has estimated the emirate needs to create 120,000 new jobs for Emiratis by 2030. This is the responsibility of all of us who play a part in economic development and time is of the essence to pool our combined knowledge and expertise to ferment innovation and harness our homegrown talent to further enable our transition to a knowledge-based economy.”
The Summit is powered by the ADGM Academy, part of the ADGM International Financial Centre, which aims to become one of the region’s leading world-class financial research and training services resources and is focused on developing a highly skilled and productive workforce.
“Youth has an enormous role to play when it comes to the nation’s transition to a knowledge based digital economy,” said Hamad Sayah Al Mazrouei, COO of ADGM and Managing Director of the ADGM Academy. “This summit is our effort to bring intellectual minds together to shape an era of smart future and a capable young generation where they are co-creators and co-drivers to sustain the change.”
Abdul Raheem Al Bateeh Alnuaimi, Acting General Manager at Abu Dhabi Media said: “With Abu Dhabi leading the way in supporting national objectives of youth empowerment, we are pleased to join forces with the Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Economy Summit. Abu Dhabi Media plays a key role in the national and regional media sector and we are honored that Al Ittihad Newspaper will be the official media partner of the summit. Through raising societal awareness about the government’s initiatives, Al Ittihad will contribute in disseminating positive messages about the government’s effort to empower the youth and develop their skills to lead the transformation journey towards an innovative knowledge-based economy”.
Organised by Informa Connect, the Summit is expected to incubate a slew of public-private sector partnerships to further knowledge exchange, process, and objectives alignment.
“We are closing the gap between youth workforce preparedness and the new realities of next-gen labor market requirements,” commented Tamer Nahas, Event Director. Informa Connect also intends to leverage partnerships with the Informa Group’s education and HR-based events – Najah, Tawdheef and the H.R. Summit and Expo – to maximise cross-sector collaboration.
The Strategic Partner of the transformative Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Economy Summit powered by ADGM Academy is the Ministry of Education, UAE. In addition to the Ministry of Education and ADGM Academy key partners include, Abu Dhabi Chamber, NYU Abu Dhabi, SEDRA, and the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi. The Summit is organised in association with Najah, Tawdheef, HRSE (H.R. Summit & Expo), and EdEx MENA.
For updated information on the Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Economy Summit, please visit: www.youthpreparedness.com
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About The Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Summit, powered by ADGM Academy:
The Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Economy Summit, powered by ADGM Academy is an exclusive, invite-only platform, bringing together illustrious speakers and distinguished delegates from government, semi-government, cross-industry organisations and universities to facilitate discussions and strategic tie-ups that address challenges to increase creativity, innovation and career preparedness of the UAE’s youth and to accelerate UAE’s economic growth towards sustainable development.
In line with UAE’s vision to empower youth and strengthen their role in various sectors, the Youth Preparedness & Knowledge Economy Summit, powered by ADGM Academy aims to support and uplift youth to harness their talent and help the UAE transition to a knowledge-based economy by promoting innovation, technology and research & development.
For more information, please contact:
Action Global Communications – UAE
Diksha Chadha / Prachi Kapoor
+971 55 59 104 59