Jordan Times
Sunday, April 30, 2006
King, Queen briefed on
YAL 2006-2007 action plan
AMMAN (JT) — His Majesty King Abdullah on Saturday said he was looking forward
to the meeting Jordan is hosting for the Young Arab Leaders (YAL) organisation
later this year.
More than 500 YAL members and young leaders from the Arab world will convene at
the Dead Sea on Nov. 22-23 to discuss issues of concern to the organisation.
As the King and Her Majesty Queen Rania met with the YAL board of directors and
chapters' directors in Aqaba yesterday, he voiced hope the organisation would
rise to expectations in addressing the challenges facing the Arab world.
YAL Chairman Saeed Muntafeq briefed the King and Queen on the organisation's
mission and its action plan for 2006-2007, the Jordan News Agency, Petra,
reported.
Before meeting with the King, YAL's board and heads of chapters had met for two
days in Aqaba to discuss their future strategy.
Following the meeting, they announced the election of Marwan Jumaa as head of
YAL's Jordan Chapter, succeeding Reem Badran. The board thanked Badran for her
efforts, highlighting her contributions to the organisation's programmes.
YAL is an independent not-for-profit association with headquarters in Dubai and
regional chapters in various Arab countries.
It is a network comprising 500 Arab men and women “who have seen the power of
action in their own lives, reached unprecedented levels of success for their
age, who are positive and can see beyond today's difficulties to that vision of
a prosperous Arab future,” according to the YAL website.
These young leaders, who are currently in prominent positions of responsibility
and are destined for extraordinary achievement, believe their efforts today can
have an impact on their communities, countries and the region as a whole.
The organisation's mission is “to improve the state of the Arab world by
creating the necessary environment for future leaders to grow and develop across
all sectors of Arab society.”
It seeks to create better opportunities for education and new means of income-
generation, and to help Arab youth become tomorrow's leaders.
Each year, YAL commits to implementing an action plan that sets the
organisation's strategic vision. They undertake projects focusing on mentorship
and education, while producing sector-specific plans designed to increase
income-generation opportunities for youth.
Also on Saturday, King Abdullah and Queen Rania received Chicago Mayor Richard
Daley, who is currently on a visit to the country.
During the meeting, the King referred to the situation of the Arab community in
Chicago and their role in serving their communities.
They also discussed means of enhancing cooperation between the Greater Amman
Municipality and Chicago Municipality in the educational and cultural fields. A
twinning agreement between the two cities was signed in 2004 under which Amman
became the 24th sister of Chicago. Relations between the two cities started
developing in 1995 when a cooperation agreement was signed between the Chicago
Cultural Affairs Department and the Royal Society of Fine Arts and the Jordanian
National Gallery.