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Young Arab Leaders
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UAE-based non-profit works to empower the next generation of Arab leaders
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Like many other regions around the globe, the Arab world faces a number of challenges: civil conflict, poverty and wealth disparity, restricted access to education, extremism, and hurdles to economic growth and job creation. These problems vary in importance from country to country, and there are conflicting ideas about how to solve them, but one thing is certain: no problems can be solved without a “generation next” of farsighted and thoughtful leadership.
The Young Arab Leaders (YAL), a non-profit organization established in 2004, is headquartered in Dubai and has chapters in 10 other countries. Its goal is to identify the next generation of Arab leaders in order to empower them to address the Arab world’s challenges and maximize human potential.
The YAL has created a network of Arab men and women who are eager to bring about change and who have seen the power of action in their own lives. As a group, they have experienced unprecedented levels of success for their age and are currently in prominent positions of responsibility. Members of the YAL are nominated from every part of the Arab world and selected from a variety of disciplines and sectors, including business, politics, media, culture, science and civil society.
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 The Chairman of the YAL is Saeed Al Muntafiq, CEO of Tatweer, which manages a large portfolio of investments in the UAE. Prior to being chosen as head of the organization in 2006, Al Muntafiq headed its UAE chapter, where he oversaw a rapid growth in membership. “Today we are entering a new phase of growth and prosperity [in the Arab world], and the need for guidance and role models for our youth has never been more urgent,” said Al Muntafiq upon taking the helm of the YAL. “It is they, who in turn will bear the responsibility of continuing the growth and development process into the future.”
The YAL’s activities include a mentoring program, an entrepreneurship network, local chapter meetings, and a series of international forums with young leaders from other regions. In April of this year, the YAL held an “Asian Dialogue” forum in Singapore. Last September, the YAL held an “Arab and American Action Forum” in New York in which former President Bill Clinton told YAL members, “I urge you to continue to make your presence known in both the Arab region and the rest of the world. It is very difficult for people to change unless they can imagine an alternative future. By and large, you are living it now. I cannot imagine a better impact you can have, swelling your numbers and making yourselves known.”
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Sharjah
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H.H. Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi
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Sharjah is an emirate of contrasts. Its 100 square kilometers
are filled with lush vegetation and coral reefs, on the one hand, and harsh deserts and rugged mountain ranges, on the other.
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Sharjah is the center of light industry in the UAE, with thousands of small industries in such sectors as textiles, clothing, plastics, and industrial machinery. The emirate is also well known for its open air markets, especially New Souk, which boasts 600 shops decorated in traditional Islamic styles.
The two commercial seaports of Sharjah are essential contributors to the UAE’s trade and industry. Port Khalid (located inside the Gulf) and Port Khor Fakkan (a natural port facility located outside the Gulf on the coast of Oman) can both handle deep-water vessels. Khor Fakkan is currently dedicated solely to container traffic and is well positioned to service the world’s largest container ships.
The Ruler of Sharjah, H.H. Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, is well known for his strong commitment to education. In 1997, he founded the American University of Sharjah (AUS) – an independent, not-for-profit coeducational institution that is accredited in the United States. AUS is based upon American institutions of higher education but is also grounded in Arab culture “to be part of a larger process of revitalizing intellectual life in the Middle East.”
In early May 2007, a development plan was announced to expand Sharjah International Airport, the first airport ever developed in the UAE and a key cargo and passenger hub for Iraq, Iran, South Asia, East Europe and the Central Asian states of the former Soviet Union. The new airport will be large enough to support the latest commercial planes, including the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A380.
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Delta Airlines Launches Non-Stop Service To Dubai
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Continental and United
may soon follow suit
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Delta Airlines began non-stop service to Dubai in May from its hub in Atlanta, Georgia. Emirates Airlines and Etihad offer flights from New York to the UAE, but Delta’s new service marks the first non-stop flight to the UAE by a U.S.-based airline. Delta is the second U.S. airline to establish non-stop flights to the Arabian Gulf in recent months; in October 2006, United Airlines inaugurated direct flights from Washington Dulles International Airport to Kuwait.
The new non-stop will connect two of the world’s most important air transportation
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hubs and allow U.S.-based passengers to make easy connections throughout the Middle East, Africa and the Indian Subcontinent. Delta is the second largest airline in the world by passenger volume, and its hub at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) is the world’s busiest airport.
U.S.-bound passengers from the UAE will fly on Boeing 777-200 aircraft and will be able to connect in Atlanta to virtually any major city in North America. Delta currently flies to 311 destinations in 52 countries and has announced ambitious plans to further expand its international service.
Gulf News, the UAE daily, recently reported that Continental Airlines and United Airlines also are considering non-stop service to the UAE. Continental has hub operations in Houston and Newark, while United flies most of its international routes out of Washington-Dulles and Chicago.
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