The British Council and Young Arab Leaders welcome 120 young people to the opening of workshop in Dubai

The four-day 'Learning from the Future' workshop runs from April 21st - 24th, held under the Patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai. At the end of the workshop, young representatives will be selected to present the views of the group directly to the leaders attending the World Economic Forum on the Middle East in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, 18-20 May 2008.

The workshop was formally opened by the Chief Executive of the British Council, Mr Martin Davidson, and the CEO of Young Arab Leaders (YAL) Mr. Assem O. Kabesh.

Addressing the young participants at the opening, Martin Davidson, Chief Executive of the British Council, said:

'I am delighted to be in Dubai - the crossroads of the region - to open this unique workshop which has brought together so many young people from across the region, to meet and exchange ideas and views. Whilst there will be much to discuss during the course of the workshop, there is a real purpose to the meeting which will focus the thoughts of all the participants; the opportunity to go to the World Economic Forum on the Middle East at Sharm El Sheikh, in May. This will be an honour and a privilege for those involved and a challenging and rewarding opportunity to represent the young people of the region with the leaders of the region. I congratulate all the young people attending this week's workshop for their involvement and commitment. This is just the start of a longer term networking project that aims to connect young people across the whole region, offering them the opportunity to learn more about each other, about themselves and their own culture, as well as other cultures.'

'On behalf of the British Council, I would like to offer our sincere gratitude and appreciation to the workshop patron, HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, whose support has been so motivating, and whose real interest in supporting the development of young people and young leaders is so inspiring. Our thanks also to the Young Arab Leaders (YAL), our partners in this exciting initiative.'

The CEO of Young Arab Leaders (YAL), Mr. Assem O. Kabesh, added: 'We, at the Young Arab Leaders are aware that there are - not just hundreds or thousands - but millions of young Arabs who know and believe that they have much to offer to our nation, who are destined to lead and who are talented and skilled, but do not have an opportunity or a channel to harness their capabilities and contribute effectively to our development goals.'

'The British Council shares YAL's focus on connecting young people across all cultures. By combining the expertise of both organizations I truly expect the Learning from the Future project to become one of the most well known and established human development initiatives in the region.'

The 'Learning from the Future' project follows the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between YAL the region's foremost development platform for business, public sector and civil society leaders in the Middle East and the British Council which aims to develop young people from partner youth organisations around the Arab World to be able to manage the challenges facing the region in the future.

Young people from Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Iraq, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom, will take part in the Dubai workshop, together with a group of global participants.