Harvard Professor Fernando Reimers Publishes Comprehensive Book Studying INJAZ Al-Arab's Positive Impact on Youth in the MENA Region

Dubai, UAE, 6 November 2018: INJAZ Al-Arab is proud to announce the publishing of “Learning to Improve the World: How INJAZ Al-Arab Helps Youth in the Middle East Develop an Entrepreneurial Mindset,” by Professor Fernando M. Reimers and his colleagues, Maria Elena Ortega and Paul Dyer. Professor Reimers is a global education expert and esteemed faculty member at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Inspired by the vision of INJAZ Al Arab’s founder Soraya Salti, Professor Reimers undertook on an extensive study of INJAZ’s flagship Company Program in six different countries throughout the Middle East and North Africa region. As the world’s largest youth entrepreneurial program, the Company Program offers students the opportunity to transform their classrooms into start-ups, with the help of corporate mentors and entrepreneurs from the local business community. In total, 867 Company Program participants from the 2010-2011 school year were surveyed for Professor Reimers’ research.

Professor Fernando Reimers, the author of “Learning to Improve the World,” comments that: “This book demonstrates how INJAZ Al-Arab differentiates itself from its peer organizations by strategically embedding its programs in local schools and emphasizing on public-private partnerships. In measuring the effectiveness of INJAZ’s approach, I hope to provide valuable insight for youth education programs across the globe. Evidenced by the study’s results, INJAZ’s design gives Arab youth a competitive edge and innovative outlook as they approach the complex economies and job markets of the twenty-first century.”

Akef Aqrabawi, President & CEO of INJAZ Al-Arab, adds that: “This book offers an in-depth study of the great role that the entrepreneurship education programs of INJAZ AL-Arab and Junior Achievement Worldwide play in advancing, empowering, and giving agency to youth. As Professor Reimers writes, at INJAZ, we take action, take risks, learn from them, and keep trying to get better, and we are excited to share this philosophy with the public through Professor Reimer’s excellent book.”

Overall, the impact of the Company Program on its students were overwhelmingly positive. More than two-thirds of participants report feeling more confident in their ability to successfully compete in the job market, and 74% of students said they felt empowered to take a leadership role in the workplace. Additionally, 67-89% say they’ve further developed their career goals, and 63% report increased knowledge about entrepreneurship. The most positive results from the survey concerned the overall value of the program, learning teamwork, and fostering motivation, and the vast majority of participants would recommend the program to another student or family member.