Executive Director, INJAZ Al-Arab
Seventh Annual Recipient
February 22, 2012
Founding
INJAZ Al-Arab is an organization that harnesses the mentorship of Arab business leaders to inspire a culture of entrepreneurialism and innovation among Arab youth. Regional Director, Soraya Salti became involved with INJAZ Al-Arab in 2001 when the majority of young adults in the Arab world were unable to find employment after graduation. Simultaneously, a large percentage of the Jordan's private sector businesses were looking for an improvement in the skills of students transitioning from the classroom into the workplace.
Salti began bringing business leaders and their staff members into Jordan's public schools for an hour each week to share their professional experience with young people. Students began learning the means for strengthening their innovation, thus deepening their understanding of the business world and increasing their professional qualifications to operate as independent business owners. Business leaders began to notice an increase in talent, skills, and confidence from graduates. In 2004, Salti took the program from Jordan to a regional level as INJAZ Al-Arab moved into 14 other Arab countries thereby expanding its reach to more than one million Arab youth through continued focus on experiential education, training in work readiness, financial literacy, and entrepreneurship.
Current Operations
Based in Amman, Salti seeks to help regional youth become an engine for growth and prosperity, rather than a burden to their economies. Inspirational programs continue to be an instrumental part of their objective. They aim to raise students' self confidence by exposing them to experiences and opportunities that increase their overall level of awareness. Students see that success is within their reach and gain the inspiration needed to fuel their efforts and meet their goals through direct connections with business professionals.
More practical programs include semester-long courses that focus on promoting financial literacy, work readiness, and life skills, as well as business entrepreneurship and social leadership. In addition, INJAZ Al-Arab provides job placement options by exposing students to career choices and helping to promote them in a competitive job market. All of this is accomplished while continuing to engage the private sector in a manner that encourages their collaboration and provides a mutual benefit.
Since 2007, several countries have come together for an annual business competition to determine the 'Company of the Year.' A group of leaders and professionals from high-profile organizations volunteer to act as mentors and judges. The students create and launch businesses, which are then assessed based on products and services, marketing plans, management reports, budgeting, and environmental considerations. Three awards were presented during last year's regional competition that includes: Most Creative TV Advertisement, Most Innovative Product, and Best Company of the Year. This competition gives students an opportunity to use their newly-acquired business skills in a real life setting.
Approach and Distinguishing Features
INJAZ Al-Arab demonstrates a strong belief in the boundless potential of young people, while maintaining a commitment to the principles of market-based economics and entrepreneurship. Through the power of partnership and collaboration, they have developed a network of 21,000 corporate volunteers, and have reached 232,671 students last year alone. Their target is to have 350,000 in 2012 and their mission is to make a difference in Arab youth through a sense of self-motivation, confidence, empowerment and a mindset that anything is possible, while fostering a passionate spirit of mentoring among business leaders, and investing their resources to help youth make the leap from school to work place.
Ms. Salti's Background
As Senior Vice-President of Middle East/North Africa for Junior Achievement Worldwide, and Regional Director of INJAZ Al-Arab, Soraya Salti has spent more than a decade mobilizing the private sector and ministries of education in the Arab world to join forces in creating a new generation of business-minded youth. Prior to joining INJAZ Al-Arab, Salti worked for two years at Jordan’s Ministry of Planning on the Innovative Competitiveness Team, assisting Harvard’s Michael Porter in applying his model for economic development. She earned an Executive MBA from Northwestern University's International Kellogg program and holds a BSc degree in economics and accounting.
Salti is a founding board member of the Business Development Center in Jordan and of the Queen Rania Awards for Excellence in Education. She is also a chair of the 2011 MENA WEF Entrepreneurship Education Action Group, a position which will permit Salti to take the lead in advancing the 21st century skills in education reform across the Arab World.
In recognition of her work, Salti has received several awards and honors, including the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship, Schwab Social Entrepreneur of the Year, and World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.
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