JEDDAH, 17 September 2003 — A project announced on Monday aims to inform young Saudis between the ages of 16 and 25 of the range of employment and business opportunities available to them.
“We’ve come up with an innovative hour-long TV program that features interviews with achievers and role models,” Khalid Tash, a management executive with a leading international company supporting the program, told a press conference.
The first episode of the redesigned “Yallah Shabab” program was broadcast on MBC on Saturday. “It is scheduled at 6 p.m. every Saturday,” Tash explained.
Role models and successful individuals from all over the Gulf are being featured in the weekly episodes.
“The idea is to help youth with career options, encourage them to start business ventures and, above all, give them a sense of responsibility in whatever field they are interested in,” Tash said. The objective is to encourage local youth to consider small business ideas, perhaps by turning their interests into businesses and so make work a pleasure, he explained.
Anchoring the program is actor Ahmed Al-Feshawi, 24, son of veteran Egyptian actor Farooq Al-Feshawi. The program is in keeping with the private sector’s responsibility toward the community and society. “We invest in programs that include health, hygiene and education, with strong focus on children, teens and women, working in cooperation with government and non-government departments,” Tash added.
“We’ve funded a variety of local activities related to education, health, society, environment and culture. We continue to invest SR2 million annually in the ‘Always school program’ to educate young girls on important aspects of adolescence.
In addition, we invest SR5.5 million every year in a hospital program for baby development,” said Tash.
