Monday 26th May, 2013, Amman, Jordan

To enable the sustainable development of societies in Jordan through the mentoring and evolution of entrepreneurs and leaders

The King Abdullah II Award for Youth Innovation and Achievement (KAAYIA) aims to celebrate and support young men and women throughout the Arab region who have pioneered innovative solutions to urgent social, economic and environmental challenges. The award is designed to promote creative problem-solving and cross-border dialogue and cooperation among Arab youth. The KAAYIA is awarded to youth, ages 18 to 30 across the Arab region. Applications are reviewed against three core criteria: the applicant's leadership qualities and the innovativeness of their approaches, his or her capacity to form and maintain partnerships, and the impact and sustainability of their projects. The award seeks to reward these distinguished young leaders throughout the region by providing them with meaningful support and recognition.

KAFD decided to add a new component to the capacity building provided to this year's finalists; in a unique partnership, Mowgli will be working with KAFD to embed mentorship at the heart of the KAAYIA finalists' ongoing development. Mowgli's mission is to provide entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs with mentors, who inspire, support and empower them in achieving their business and personal potential

Social entrepreneurship has the twofold impact of addressing social challenges that governments haven't been able to tackle, while offering a genuine career alternative for young people. Despite this opportunity, there are numerous barriers to social entrepreneurship that continue to hold back the sector. Last year's report on social entrepreneurship in the MENA region from Stanford University, which draws on extensive survey data, identifies the high failure rate of new ventures as a key concern for social entrepreneurship. Only 20% of respondents said their venture was operational and running well; this prospect makes many would-be social entrepreneurs understandably hesitant. Consequently, having mentors to support them through the start-up and growth phases of their venture is a vital resource for social entrepreneurs, something that also emerges clearly from the data in the report.

Mowgli's 'relational mentoring' provides a trusting, one-to-one relationship between a mentor and a social entrepreneur, helping the latter to see the bigger picture of themselves and their venture. This enables problems to be addressed, opportunities to be explored, and action planned. The mentor helps the social entrepreneur to solve their own problems, and so develop their decision-making and leadership capabilities. The social entrepreneurs making up the list of KAAYIA finalists will have access to this unique support, allowing them to move their ventures, and themselves, forward with confidence.

Mowgli will run its unique and proven Mowgli Mentoring Experience (MME) with the KAAYIA social entrepreneurs. This begins with the Kickstart workshop - a residential weekend that is designed to train mentors in the art of mentoring, a fundamental component of leadership development, and match them with the social entrepreneurs for the most effective mentoring relationships.

Reflecting on the partnership, Mowgli Chief Executive Officer, Helen Al-Uzaizi, said: "The Mowgli Foundation is honored to be a part of this fantastic program to support the KAAYIA entrepreneurs through our mentoring program. We strive to place mentoring at the heart of entrepreneurship and leadership development and believe that this Award highlights the excellent entrepreneurs that are making strides in the region. We are thrilled to announce this partnership and to support budding social entrepreneurs. KAFD's commitment to developing entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship in Jordan and the region, makes this partnership a natural collaboration to an aligned vision"

KAFD Director, Mr. Qais Qatameen commented: "The KAAYIA programme, sheds lights on great youth-led initiatives who are addressing urgent challenges at their local communities. The program provides its social entrepreneurs with a monetary grant and tailored capacity building training to help them enhance their performance, reach out to more beneficiaries and expand their outreach. In addition to this type of support, KAFD has signed an MoU with the Mowgli Foundation, in order to pair these social entrepreneurs with experienced mentors from the great network Mowgli has. Through the exposure to a knowledgeable mentor, entrepreneurs gain access to wider professional networks, new perspectives on their initiatives and are empowered to enhance their leadership and management skills.

Mentors can also benefit greatly from this relationship, as they gain new perspective on some of the important work of social entrepreneurs, and can lend their business and professional acumen to the social sector.

We're looking forward to seeing the outcomes of this new partnership, and hoping that KAAYIA's social entrepreneurs will become part of Mowgli's pool of mentors in the near future."

-Ends-

About KAFD:
The King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD) was established by a royal decree in 2001 as a non-governmental organization.  Its aim was to support the Jordanian community by driving human and infrastructure development.

KAFD works to further develop key sectors in Jordan and improve local standards of living for all segments of the Jordanian community, targeting individuals, public and private sectors, civil society organizations as well as providing support for youth entrepreneurship initiatives and empowerment programmes.

KAFD focuses on capacity building and training programmes for different segments of the society mainly targeting school and university students, public sector employees and high level decision makers.  These programmes run through partnerships with local and international parties.  Through its Career Guidance Offices, KAFD reaches to almost all Jordanian universities across the Kingdom.  KAFD also works as the execution arm for many initiatives assigned by His Majesty's Office.

About the Mowgli Foundation:
The Mowgli Foundation is an award winning, UK-headquartered mentoring organisation, established in 2008 by successful serial entrepreneur Tony Bury, in response to the need for job creation and sustainable economic and societal development in the MENA region as well as in UK communities. 

Mowgli provides mentoring that inspires, connects and guides entrepreneurs and leaders to overcome life's personal and business challenges through:

  • Interactive, experiential and transformational 'Kickstart' workshops

  • A unique environment for accelerated relationship building, mentor training and matching

  • Engagement within a learning and mentoring focused global alumni network

Mowgli has matched over 260 entrepreneurs in 8 countries with trained mentors, who voluntarily support them throughout a yearlong program, and were subsequently recognised in December 2012 with the Mohammed bin Rashid Award for Young Business Leaders Award for the 'Best Mentor Network in the Arab Region'.

CONTACT DETAILS
Website: www.mowgli.org.uk
Mowgli Media Contact: Thana'a Al Khasawneh, Thanaa.Khasawneh@mowgli.org.uk
Mowgli UK Office:
CAN Mezzanine, Hanover House, Queen Charlotte Street, Bristol BS1 4EX, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1172 020137

Mowgli Jordan Office:
First Floor, Building 10, King Hussein Business Park, King Abdullah II Street,  PO Box 954285, Amman 11954 Jordan
Tel: +962 (6) 5805370
Mowgli Foundation Registered Charity Number: 1127087

© Press Release 2013