Citibank participates in Job Shadow Day Program

On a single minded mission, the teenagers explored the bank and grilled their assigned Citibank hosts on their roles, activities and skill sets for over two hours to learn how banks functioned.

This activity was part of the Job Shadow Day Program organized by INJAZ-UAE in collaboration with Citibank to introduce career options and the skills required to enter the private sector.

Job Shadow Day is a program implemented by Junior Achievement Worldwide (JAW), the international affiliate of INJAZ-UAE, a business education NGO that is currently offering programs on entrepreneurship, financial literacy and success skills for over 1500 students across the UAE in cooperation with the Ministry of Education. As part of the program, students are partnered with private sector volunteers for one day for an authentic work world experience.

"I want to be a Security Manager one day. I never knew a bank had so many different types of jobs. I learned many new things in a very short time and I am excited about my future," shared Ahmed Ali Ghafan, who had spent his Job Shadow Day with Citigroup Security Manager, Mohammed Ismail.

Volunteers from Citibank introduced students to various aspects of running a bank including CitiPhone Call Centre, Customer Service and Quality Management, Public Relations, Administration, Citi Business Product and Relationship Management, Mail Room, Cash Operations, Investment and Insurance Operations and Bank Security.

The volunteers also had a chance to interact with the students and learn about their requirements. "The exposure of these students is very limited and the private sector is a mystery," said Kamal Taiyab from Citibank and a volunteer for the day. "They are surprised to learn about the various opportunities available to them. We are proud to help them as this is the future of the nation that we are shaping."

Hussain Al-Obaidly, Head of HR at Citibank UAE, said:

"Citi supports JA in many countries around the world. Our commitment to the regional Middle East office reflects Citi's belief in JA's programs to help deliver basic tools in the area of financial literacy which can impact the lives of students, hence better prepare them to meet the challenges of the real world."

Supporting the feedback from volunteers, Sulaf Al-Zu'bi, Executive Director of INJAZ-UAE said, "When we first met these students, they had little knowledge of the difference between the private and public sector and companies that offer products or services. This has been an eye opening experience for them and we hope it serves as a catalyst for smarter career choices. Partners like Citibank help us link the private sector to the classroom and teach workforce readiness in a more memorable way."

Citi has been in the Arab World for nearly 50 years and continues to view the region as critical to its global franchise. It is currently present in ten Arab countries including Egypt, UAE, Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait.

Citibank is a global partner with Junior Achievement (JA) Worldwide, the parent organization of INJAZ-UAE. Across the world, JA has 384,925 volunteers teaching 367,305 classes to 9,326,748 students a year. In the Middle East, INJAZ Al-Arab, JAW's regional arm, has trained 300,000 Arab students with the help of 10,000 corporate volunteers and partnerships with ministries of education since it began in 1999.

Mohammed Al-Shroogi, Managing Director for the Middle East and Chief Executive Officer for Citi in the UAE, said, "Junior Achievement's objectives are in line with Citi and the Citi Foundation's efforts to support financial and entrepreneurial education across the world. Our strategic alliance with Injaz-UAE means that more UAE students will acquire necessary life skills and the right business exposure in order to succeed in the future."

Recently, Citi and the Citi Foundation announced a 10-year, $200m global financial education commitment, the formation of a new Office of Financial Education and a global initiative designed to encourage its 300,000 employees around the world to devote time to support financial education and other charitable causes. Under the new initiative, employees may take a day off from work to volunteer for non-profit organizations in their communities.