MiSK GLOBAL FORUM ADDRESSES YOUTH ROLE IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Under the patronage of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz, MiSK Global Forum – an initiative to empower the Arab youth – kicked off in Riyadh on Tuesday with a key address by Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates.

MiSK Global Forum (MGF 2016) aims at exploring means to empower Arab youth to become global citizens and to lead the way for the sustainable development in the Kingdom.

The two-day forum is organized by the MiSK Foundation and will focus on entrepreneurship and innovation issues covering 16 areas including education, leadership and planning, human development, sustainable development, public relations, media, Information Technology, employment, corporate development, literacy, arts and sports.

The gathering also aims to explore the potential of the country’s youth within the framework of the National Transformation Program (NTP-2020) and Saudi Vision 2030.

In a recorded opening address, Gates said he believes young people in Saudi Arabia have a key role in achieving Saudi Vision 2030.

“The future of any country is about its young people; in Saudi Arabia that is even truer because you are the majority and you are more educated and inquisitive than any generation that has come before”, Gates said.

“Vision 2030 is a powerful set of goals, but it will be the young people whose innovative work is needed to achieve them; that means lots of studying and getting the new skills that will equip you for the evolving job market, it means building on the deeply engrained values of giving back, caring for others and working toward a common goal”, he added.

The forum will include a series of panel discussions and workshops and will gather 130 experts and academics, government ministers, officials, businessmen and entrepreneurs.

Speakers will share their insights and ideas across a range of opportunities available to young people in the global economy, and reflect on the lessons required for the future.

Credit: Fatah Al-Rahman Youssef

Riyadh

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