INJAZ Bahrain trained 108,000 students

Manama, Jan. 17 (BNA): The Kingdom of Bahrain's Government, Tamkeen (i.e. the Labour Development Fund), Bahrain Development Bank (BDB) and the Supreme Council of Women (SCW) through incubators encourage and support entrepreneurs and startups, said Executive Director of INJAZ Bahrain, Her Highness Shaikha Hessa bint Khalifa Al Khalifa. Speaking to Entrepreneur MIDDLEEAST, HH Shaikha Hessa said INJAZ Bahrain which is a part of the global JA Worldwide network, has been for more than 10 years, building on its vision "to inspire a generation of Bahraini youth to use their natural talents, inspirations, passions, and determinations to become the business leaders and entrepreneurs of tomorrow." Volunteers teach INJAZ Bahrain’s programmes, HH Shaikha Hessa is extremely cognizant of their contributions in realizing the organization’s vision. "We tell them they are our partners in the programme," she says "Without the volunteers, we cannot open a class. So, our team -we are a team of 10 people working in the organization- try and outreach to as many people in the community as possible to join us, and support our mission. And it’s been very good- the board of directors has been very effective in releasing their volunteers [from their respective companies] during working hours, go to the schools once a week, and teach our programme." In terms of future plans for INJAZ Bahrain, Shaikha Hessa Al Khalifa is keen on increasing the organization’s reach in Bahrain. "We aim to continue to reach as many students as possible, to engage as many volunteers as possible, because the programme has two sides to it," she explained. "When the volunteer teaches the programme, the volunteer gains skills as well; it’s not only the student. So both parties are benefiting. If the volunteer did not take the programme as a young person, the programme itself will enhance the volunteer’s communication, presentation, time management skills, etc. At the same time, the students are gaining a lot of information, learning how to communicate, and learning about the global economy. So the programme has benefits to both the volunteers and the students. So we are trying to get as many people to volunteer with us, as many students to join with us... We want to train a lot of volunteers, and we want to train a lot of students," HH Shaikh Hessa said. HH Shaikha Hessa who’s also a member of Bahrain’s Supreme Council for Women, as well as the Chairperson of Al Salam Bank’s Board of Directors - proudly stated that INJAZ Bahrain’s programmes, which has its volunteers educate students on workforce readiness, financial literacy and entrepreneurship, have, so far, reached 108,000 students in the country- and it’s pretty certain that this number is only set to grow in the future. Recounting INJAZ Bahrain’s origins, Al Khalifa says she started the organization after she started working in Bahrain following her studies in the UK, which was where she had got firsthand experience of the JA Worldwide programme through its branch there, Young Enterprise. "I did the complete programme," she remembers. "And therefore, I’m an alumnus of the organization." On her return to Bahrain, Al Khalifa found that while the country had a strong educational system already in place, students weren’t being taught entrepreneurship in a practical manner, which, when considering that they were going to be soon joining the workforce, left them at a disadvantage. "Bridging the gap between education and the world of work is very important," Al Khalifa notes. "And the JA Worldwide Programme offers that- they bridge the gap between the world of work and school." With that being the case, Al Khalifa sought out JA Worldwide’s regional office in Jordan at the time, and went on to establish a licensed branch of the organization in Bahrain. She then approached the country’s Ministry of Education, which got on board with INJAZ Bahrain, after realizing the benefits of its offerings as an extracurricular activity for students, and then kicked it off on a high school level. At the same time, Al Khalifa went about setting up a leadership team for the organization as well. "I approached some of the big organizations in Bahrain, large organizations in Bahrain from the private sector, and we formed a board of directors, comprising of 10 CEOs from the major corporations," she says. "And then they funded the organization, and provided their employees to be volunteers to teach the programme." "I’m a Bahraini citizen, and I firmly believe in citizenship- what your country has given to you, you have to give back to your country." That’s the response I got when I asked about what drove HH Shaikha Hessa bint Khalifa Al Khalifa to do all that she does in her role as the Executive Director of INJAZ Bahrain, a non-profit institution that she founded in 2005. INJAZ Bahrain aims to equip young people to succeed in the global economy- and not just the local one. "Bahrain has [a population of 1.2 million, the GCC has less than 40 million residents," she notes. "You can’t think on a local level to create a big business. For a profitable business, you have to think more on a global level, I think." As a result, INJAZ Bahrain’s offerings are always in tune with changes in the global economy, as they are updated and reviewed every few years by JA Worldwide to ensure that they are not stagnant. "We want to keep on offering the best programmes available globally," Her Highness said. "We have an entrepreneurial society. We have Tamkeen, which is a part of the government that offers aid to startups. We have the Bahrain Development Bank, we have the Supreme Council for Women, and both have incubators to support entrepreneurs. But, to be honest, there has been no one targeting younger kids. And this is where INJAZ Bahrain comes in. We actually teach them [entrepreneurship] at university, high school, and intermediate levels, before they get in to the job market. So we teach them to think entrepreneurially, before they finish their education," Her Highness said.