Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education’s award-winning Young Thinker’s Program crosses 53,000 Learners
Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 25 April 2022: Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education’s (AGFE) award-winning Young Thinker’s Program (YTP) celebrates crossing 53,000 learners in record time over-taking initial targets.
Launched in October 2018 by AGFE, the Al Ghurair Young Thinkers Program (YTP) is a digital platform that utilizes innovative, technology-driven components to support Emirati and Arab youth aged 15 to 35 make well-informed education to employment decisions. The program, designed in partnership with Arizona State University (ASU) and endorsed by the United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, provides bilingual (English/Arabic) contextualized tools and information across the UAE and the Arab region, free of charge. In just over three years since YTP’s launch, the program supports over 53,000 youth, exceeding the program’s initial target of reaching 5,000 youth in five years.
In December 2021, the Al Ghurair Young Thinkers Program also won the Best Online Program Gold Award at the Wharton-QS Reimagine Education Awards 2021. Also known as the ‘Oscars’ of educational awards, Reimagine Education rewards innovative approaches that enhance student learning outcomes and employability. The Awards celebrated 2021’s most exciting, effective new approaches to teaching and learning, and were announced by QS Quacquarelli Symonds and The Wharton School after five rounds of expert scrutiny of the over 1,300 applicants from various educational fields. AGFE’s win and milestone achievement was announced on the side-lines of the QS Higher Ed Summit 2022, held in Dubai in March 2022.
Applauding the achievements of YTP, Dr. Sonia Ben Jaafar, the CEO of AGFE said, “YTP was designed specifically to help our youth develop future-facing skills required to transition smoothly into digital economies of the future by incorporating innovative, technology-driven components into their education. In the past few years, we have placed a strong emphasis and focus on emerging value and employability skills for the future of work. We are immensely proud to accept the Gold Prize for Best Online Program which recognizes our efforts to effectively incorporate EdTech into learning models that give rise to new opportunities for students and job seekers in the region. This award is a testament to the significant role we are playing in this matter.”
With its promise of providing high-quality education to employment resources, YTP also responds to the UN’s 2030 Agenda’s commitment to equitable, universal access to education that leads to decent work for all, through strategic partnerships.
The Abdulla Al Ghurair Foundation for Education is the largest private foundation focused on education in the UAE and the Arab region. In the UAE, the foundation has forged a series of strategic partnerships to provide young Emiratis with the latest tools and information to support their career aspirations through skill-building, empowering them to contribute to their nation’s competitiveness.
