With the honorable attendance of Barclays PLC Chairman
Barclays Bank Egypt celebrated the achievements of the graduates of the "Young Women Leadership" program in cooperation with the Near East Foundation (NEF) and the Center of Development Services (CDS). The program aims at building young women's skills in ICT, leadership, communication, and advocacy. The program targets 1800 young women aged between 18-25 in Cairo, Minya, and Beni Suef.
The program equips young women with training, career counseling, and advocacy skills. As such, young women are provided with the tools, opportunities, and skills required for entering the job market and a successful economic future.
The event was honored by the attended by Marcus Agius, Chairman Barclays PLC, senior representatives from Barclays Egypt, beneficiaries of the project, and representatives from Center for Development Services. The involvement of Mr. Agius in the event stems from his interest and involvement in Development projects in countries in which Barclays operates, in specific programs aimed at education, training, and employment. These projects aid the economy particularly in emerging countries. As such, Mr. Agius was keen on attending the celebration and personally handing out certificates to the top 20 graduates during his first visit to Egypt.
The Program endeavors at achieving two key goals during the 20-month long program. The first is to equip young women with communication and leadership skills; including English language, conversation, decision-making, and increasing their awareness about women's rights and democracy issues. This program also ensures introductory training on administration skills, such as program design, financial management, and reporting.
The second goal provides practical opportunities for applying learning in real life situations and activating initiatives related to leadership skills as a key step to graduation from the program. Barclays provides internship opportunities for the 100 best performing young women within Barclays Egypt branches during the summer holidays.
"As a deeply-rooted financial institution, we take the responsibility to deliver our expertise, financial assets and services in developing and enhancing the skills of youth. We are proud to work hand-in-hand with the Near East Foundation and the Center for Development Services to implement this outstanding program in supporting young women and celebrating the skills and capabilities acquired. We hope the skills will enable them to join the job market or start their own small enterprises. This is one of the goals which Barclays makes every effort to achieve for the positive impact it has on Egypt's economy," said Mr. Khalid ElGibaly, Managing Director, Barclays Bank Egypt and North Africa during the graduation ceremony.
Barclays believes in supporting the communities in which it operates, not only through financial contributions, but also through time, knowledge, and expertise. Female leaders at Barclays Egypt volunteered their time and skills during three activities. They delivered lectures, provided career counseling, and conducted a career shadowing day at Barclays Bank Egypt's main office.
This program lies under the "Banking on Brighter Futures" theme adopted by Barclays around the world. Barclays supports the program as it serves an important role that youth, especially young women, can play building and improving their communities, as well as developing their skills and ensuring a positive contribution in their society.
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Barclays Bank Egypt in brief:
Barclays Bank Egypt began operations in 1864 but was nationalized in 1956. It re-entered Egypt about 30 years ago in a joint venture with Banque du Caire. In March 2004, Barclays acquired 100% ownership and control of the business. Through a horizontal and vertical expansion plan, the number of bank employees exceeded 2168 with a 75% rise compared to the same period last year to serve clients across the country through a network of 93 ATMs and 57branches.
(Above figures are reported as at financial performance report ending September 2008)
NEF & CDS in brief:
Near East Foundation (NEF) is the oldest American volunteer foundation established in 1911. It works in the Middle East and Africa since the 1930s to boost developmental projects in agriculture, health, women, technical support, and training to meet the requirements of government and NGOs in countries it operates in.
Center for Development Services (CDS) is an Egyptian company undertaking developmental, social, and economic projects in Egypt and the Arab region. In addition, the center looks to apply research and provides technical support and training for government, non-governmental, and private sectors.
For more information, please contact:
Salah El Din Aloui
Assistant Media Relations Manager
Media Relations
Tel: +2 02 3047215 - 17
Fax: +2 02 3047213
Mob: +2 012 39 79 586
E-Mail: salah@promoseven.com
Press Release 2009
