17 February 2016
· ADIB to pledge AED1.5 Million for Emirates Foundation Youth-Development Programmes

Abu Dhabi: Emirates Foundation, an independent philanthropic organization set up by the Abu Dhabi Government to facilitate public-private partnerships for empowering youth across the UAE, and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) have  partnered in support of financial literacy through Emirates Foundation's programme 'Esref Sah', which aims to educate youth on ways to manage their current and future financial and asset base.

The signing ceremony, was attended by H.E Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi's Transport Department and Managing Director of the Emirates Foundation, and His Highness Sheikh Theyab Bin Mohamed Al Nahyan, Board member of the Emirates Foundation. 

The three-year agreement signed today by Mohanna Al Muhairi, Chief Operations Officer of Emirates Foundation, and Mohamed Ali Al Fahim. Region Head, Corporate Banking, reflects both partners' strategic commitment to promoting financial literacy among young Emiratis as an initiative of critical importance to the UAE's overall development agenda.

With a commitment of AED 1.5 million, the agreement, which offers both financial 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 and 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.  

This partnership comes as part of ADIB's UAE vision to invest in development programmes such as the "Smart Money Programme" ADIB's flagship financial education programme which aims to raise awareness and educate UAE youth about the importance of financial management, budgeting and investment.. In this respect, Emirates Foundation will support ADIB's Smart Money programme through 'Esref Sah' through addressing personal finance issues specific to young Emiratis and provides the tools to help them enhance their financial planning and management skills and avoid excessive debt.

Commenting on the agreement, Mohanna Al Muhairi said: "We are pleased to have ADIB on board as a gold partner. This  partnership is a translation  of our model of Venture Philanthropy which focuses on providing sustainable solutions to social challenges. Apart from financial support, 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."

The agreement provides a great opportunity for ADIB to boost their CSR strategy. As a gold partner, ADIB will have unlimited access to research data on youth in the UAE, and to available statistics, trends and insights into young people's social habits and youth trends. In addition, the agreement carries a wide spectrum of opportunities for ADIB employees to engage in a variety of volunteering and training options with Emirates Foundation Programmes such as becoming peer mentors and coaches for the Foundation's staff and youth especially in areas of financial literacy as well as participating in the Kafa'at Leadership Camps focusing on building leadership skills.

Nawal Bayari, ADIB's Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, said: "Financial Education is an integral part of our brand promise and partnering with the Emirates Foundation will allow expanding the reach of Smart Money, our flagship financial education program. The partnership will allow us to reach a wider and more diverse audience from the UAE youth population. ADIB launched the Smart Money initiative in 2011. Since then, we have added an interactive portal on to our website that offers tips on saving and investment. The portal helps users to formulate savings plans for education and retirement, for instance, and also carries an investment planner and savings calculator."

"This agreement is a quality addition to our endeavours to build long-term partnerships with the private sector, and leverage such partnerships in promoting the skills of our young people and unleashing their potential."

"ADIB stands out as a leading UAE banking institution with a proven track record in 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," Al Muhairi added.

The Chief Operations Officer concluded by encouraging other banking institutions to follow in the footsteps of ADIB and support the Foundation in training and empowering local Emirati nationals to enter the work force and lead within the different sectors and industries."

-Ends-

About Emirates Foundation 
Emirates Foundation was launched in April 2005 as an initiative of His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. It is chaired by HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In 2012, the Emirates Foundation was re-launched under the name "Emirates Foundation for Youth Development" as an integrated national initiative that seeks to invest in UAE youth. The new strategy uses the model venture philanthropy with a view to impacting the lives of young people in the UAE positively and permanently. To achieve this, the Foundation will work in three key focus areas: social inclusion; community engagement; and leadership and empowerment. It will seek to identify, educate and inform the public about challenges facing UAE youth while developing sustainable, enterprise-based solutions to social issues and motivating young Emiratis to volunteer, participate and give back to society.

Emirates Foundation works to enhance partnerships between private and public sectors, in order to develop sustainable ways of helping young people in the UAE make an active contribution to the country's development. EF is funded through contributions from the Abu Dhabi government and private sector companies.

About ADIB:
ADIB is one of the largest retail banks in the UAE. Its 857,000 customers benefit from a network of nearly 88 branches and more than 785 ATMs, as well as online, mobile and phone banking, providing them access to their accounts 24 hours a day. Named "Best Bank in the UAE" by The Financial Times' The Banker publication, ADIB has a rich track record of innovation, including introducing the award-winning Ghina savings account, award-winning co-branded cards with Etihad and Etisalat and a wide range of financing products. The bank has continuously increased its asset base over the past five years and is continuing to build its presence internationally in countries such as Egypt, in which it has 70 branches, as well as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Sudan, Iraq and Qatar.

For media information, please visit www.adib.ae or contact:
ADIB                                                                                                                       Brunswick Group
Radwa Nasraldin Shehab                                                                                    Mouaffak Hajjar
Direct: +971 2 412 8093                                                                           Direct: +971 2 234 4604
Mobile: +971 50 473 4482                                                                          Mobile: +971 56 174 8183
Email: Radwa.Shehab@adib.com                                                              Email: ADIB@brunswickgroup.com

For more information on Emirates Foundation, please contact:
Abdallah Bani Ali - abaniali@emiratesfoundation.ae +971 5 08192719
Samar Abdulhadi -samar@inspirat.us +971504546313

© Press Release 2016