UAE: Community platform nurtures next-generation female leaders

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Supplied photo

Abu Dhabi - One of the projects Finllect, a financial literacy mobile app, is now being incubated at the Dubai International Financial Centre’s Fintech Hive.

by

Ashwani Kumar

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Published: Fri 12 Mar 2021, 7:06 PM

Promise of a Generation, a non-profit community platform, through its e7 ‘Daughters of the Emirates’ programme is driving women empowerment and talent development in the country.

The annual leadership programme which was co-founded by Puerto Rican expat Adela Acevedo Sarna in 2015, has benefited 175 women through its social impact projects and workshops.


One of the projects Finllect, a financial literacy mobile app, is now being incubated at the Dubai International Financial Centre’s Fintech Hive.

Sarna noted that young women are passionate about their communities and want to give back to their country, but need a platform to execute their ideas and achieve their vision.


“With the programme, we harness the positive energy, enthusiasm and yes-we-can attitude that youth bring to the table. We consider these as superpowers that can be deployed to achieve community impact, unlock potential and create a sisterhood of support throughout all stages of life. We do this by providing training in essential areas such as design-thinking, financial literacy, and project management; access to mentors, experts and resources; inspiration from women leaders in the community; and seed funding for the community projects they design and then execute,” she said.

Today, E7 alumnae are university students, professionals, authors, mothers and wives working in several fields in the UAE and abroad. Some successful ‘daughters’ include Suaad Al Hammadi, member of the 68th UN Civil Society Youth Sub-Committee, Mozah Al Samahi, senior research analyst at the Prime Minister’s Office, Noora Al Awadi, corporate strategy specialist at the Dubai Government’s Economic Development Department and Reem Hantoush Al Ali, project manager at Department Municipalities and Transport in Abu Dhabi.

And projects done during the pandemic include a three-day boot camp and hackathon to develop entrepreneurial skills among students and seven virtual workshops to benefit people of determination.

The platform has found support from several community contributors and entities, and this week Accenture offered support to the programme with a three-year partnership agreement.

“Accenture’s know-how and expertise in technologies and its presence in the GCC will enable e7 to look into expanding its programme and its wealth of development opportunities to women in the region, such as Saudi Arabia,” Sarna said.

Nadya Abdulla Kamali, Accenture’s new country managing director for UAE, said the company strives to make a difference in the UAE’s current talent scene. “Through expert training and programmes, we are confident our new partnership will go a long way in female talent development in the new economy post-Covid-19,” the Emirati added.

ashwani@khaleejtimes.com


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