RIYADH, 28 March 2007 - Some 37 public and private establishments as well 19 companies and factories were honored here Sunday for financing a training and employment program run by INSAN (Charity Committee for Orphans Care) by Prince Faisal ibn Salman, chairman of the Saudi Research and Marketing Group and president of the development committee of INSAN.
Some of the establishments that were honored included the Al-Faisaliah Group and Saudi Oger Ltd. Other honored government bodies included the General Organization for Technical Education and Vocational Training and (GOTEVOT), the King Saud University, the Imam Muhamad Ibn Saud Islamic University and the Ministry of Social Affairs.
The ceremony was held at the Security Officers Club and was attended by several Saudi businessmen and officials. During the ceremony, businessmen donated more than SR900,000 to the orphanage society. McDonald's also offered 100 employment and training opportunities for the orphanage society.
"We have established a special department to seek job opportunities, as well as training for orphans," said Saleh Al-Yousef, general manager of INSAN. He added that 420 orphans had been trained in private establishments last year in areas needed in the Saudi market such as computing and nursing.
"Special courses were given to female orphans in different areas related to women such as cosmetics, and sewing," he said, adding that as part of the Saudi government's aims to provide special care to orphans INSAN has chosen 22 students for government-paid scholarships.
Al-Yousef also said that INSAN is currently training 928 male and female orphans in several programs with the cooperation of the public and private sectors. "Society has benefited from several of the scholarship training programs organized by philanthropists as well as businessmen.... Last summer, 285 orphans had been trained," he said.
He added that the aim of the training programs was to make orphans self-dependent as well to help them develop self-confidence and their own skills.
Jayez Al-Inazi, an orphan who attended the ceremony, praised for INSAN for the opportunities it has given him. "We want to thank Prince Faisal for his support to us. ... INSAN provided tuition fees for my high school education, which I completed at a prestigious private school," he said, adding, INSAN was currently paying tuition fees for his diploma in dentistry.
