The United Arab Emirates has set up several new initiatives to help Emirati youth harness their personal potential and develop their own business start-ups, according to Shamma Bint Sohail Al Mazrui, the country’s 26 year-old Minister of State for Youth Affairs.
Al Mazrui was appointed in February 2016 when she was aged just 22, making her the youngest government minister in the world.
The first ever Emirati to qualify for the Rhodes scholarship, an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in 2015 she graduated with a Masters of Public Policy with distinction from Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government.
As part of her role in cabinet Al Mazrui see it as her job to offer opportunities for the UAE’s young people. “I think the main challenge is that in roughly 50 years our country was built by our natural resource and oil – now, the next 50 years, are going to be built by our natural resource which is our human capital – our Emirati youth,” she said in a TV interview with Euronews’ Inspire Middle East programme.
Some of the initiatives her ministry has helped develop is the Abu Dhabi Youth Hub, which is the first Abu Dhabi youth centre and focused on maximizing the potential and passion of young people. “It’s all about harnessing talent, by creating different spaces that can empower, whether you’re an entrepreneur or whether you’re an artist,” the minister said.
The UAE has also unveiled Launch Pad, which is the government’s initiative to help develop entrepreneurship among young Emiratis.
“The idea is that any youth – just like rockets need a place to launch – we’re creating launch pad spots around the nation; in Dubai Mall, City Walk, Yas Mall – where any young person can go on the website and can sign up and he’ll get a free space for six months to open his business. So, you are removing the cost of rent from young people and you’re helping them focus on what their product is, and which market. And they are in direct contact with their customers, so they’ll get to see if their product is meaningful or can be successful,” the minister said.
Click below to watch the full interview with Shamma Bint Sohail Al Mazrui, the UAE’s Minister of State for Youth Affairs.
Follow us on
