MEPI AND BMENA IN KUWAIT: YOUNG ARAB LEADERS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 005285

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR NEA PDAS CHENEY AND DAS CARPENTER, AND NEA/PI, NEA/ARPI

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KMPI PINR KDEM KPAO ECON EAID KU
SUBJECT: MEPI AND BMENA IN KUWAIT: YOUNG ARAB LEADERS
ORGANIZATION AND YOUTH THEME OF FORUM FOR FUTURE TAKE SHAPE



1. SUMMARY AND COMMENT On December 27, Ambassador met with
Maha Al-Ghunaim, Vice-Chairperson and Managing Director of
Global Investment House (GIH),to discuss the Young Arab
Leaders organization in Kuwait (YAL-K). Also on 12/27,
Ambassador spoke with Kuwait Economic Society head Dr. Rola
Dasthi about her efforts to put together programs to engage
regional youth as part of the Kuwaiti responsibility for this
aspect of the work of the Forum for the Future. YAL-K, a
branch of the regional YAL founded in Dubai in February,
2004, is launching a fund in Kuwait similar to the Fund for
the Future to support small business ideas, and has an
ambitious set of projects designed to promote civic action
and practical business training for youth. YAL-K is working
with the Kuwait Economic Society to help implement Kuwait's
commitment to take on the "youth" file in the Forum for the
Future. Dashti is planning two regional conferences: one on
elements of success and failure for entrepreneurs and another
on regional youths' perceptions of the future. Both
Al-Ghunaim and Dashti noted that the challenge now is to turn
a lot of good ideas into real projects, and they looked
forward to working with the Embassy's MEPI team as they
proceed.


2. Both Al-Ghunaim and Dashti noted the difficulty they have
encountered in turning good ideas into concrete projects.
Although many young people in Kuwait are initially
enthusiastic about new projects, few show the commitment for
sustained follow-through. Ambassador offered the support of
the Embassy MEPI team to complement the YAL, Forum for the
Future, and Kuwait Youth Organization efforts wherever
possible. Dashti mentioned an upcoming meeting with Kuwait
MEPI Coordinator Tanya Anderson, and thanked Ambassador for
Anderson's assistance and skillful guidance. END SUMMARY AND
COMMENT

"Young Arab Leaders" in Formative Stage
--------------


3. On December 27, Ambassador and Econoff met with Maha
Al-Ghunaim, Vice-Chairperson and Managing Director of Global
Investment House (GIH) to discuss the Young Arab Leaders
organization (YAL). YAL was launched in February 2004 as an
initiative to encourage networking among young Arab business
people under the age of 43, and has its headquarters in
Dubai. YAL-Kuwait (YAL-K) is administered by a five-member
steering committee headed by Al-Ghunaim; others on the
steering committee include Dr. Rola Dashti of the Kuwait
Economic Society (KES),Faid Al-Fozan of Gulf Holding
Company, Ayad Al-Khorafi of the Kuwait Scientific Club, Rana
Al-Khalid of National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) Capital, liberal
MP Ali Al-Rashed, and Dana Al-Sabah of the American
University of Kuwait (AUK). In contrast to the membership
criteria recommended by the Dubai-based YAL, which includes a
minimum net-worth and a documented business success story,
Al-Ghunaim said that YAL-K had argued for and received
approval for its own set of criteria that include
non-wealth-based achievements, looking to NGOs and GOK
ministries for up and coming members, in addition to the
business community. She opined that there is too much focus
in Kuwait on creating wealth, and too little attention paid
to community service. For the time being, YAL-K is under the
legal umbrella of the Kuwait Economic Society; Al-Ghunaim
said that KES member (and MP) Ali Al-Rashed is in charge of
getting YAL-K the required NGO license from the Ministry of
Social Affairs and Labor, so that YAL-K can function as an
independent entity. At present YAL-K has about 50 members,
and Al-Ghunaim hoped to have more than 200 by the end of

2006. The membership fee is set at 600 dinars, approximately
2100 dollars, per year.


4. One of the activities of the YAL will be an equity fund
for young investors in Kuwait. Al-Ghunaim commented that
"there is hardly any capital in Kuwait for the young." GIH
will be the "filter" for funds to these entrepreneurs, and
will administer the fund at cost. YAL-K has not yet raised
the projected $50 million in capital for the fund.
Al-Ghunaim acknowledged that the fund's success is not
assured, noting the mixed results of a similar Kuwait
Investment Authority (KIA) program. The KIA program, endowed
with approximately USD 350 million but burdened with
overly-restrictive qualification criteria and political
controversy, has disbursed less than USD 15 million to young
entrepreneurs. Al-Ghunaim asked whether the USG would be
interested in investing in the fund. Ambassador replied that
this would be unlikely given the needs of the Fund for the
Future and its initial focus on Morocco and Egypt, where
capital for such needs is even harder to find.


5. According to Al-Ghunaim, YAL-K will also focus on "what's
missing" among young Kuwaitis, with a two-pronged approach

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targeting the "Motivational Aspect" and the "Educational
Aspect." She gave examples of training in public speaking
through the Toastmasters program and training for women
investors to help them make independent decisions about where
to put their investment funds. She invited the Ambassador to
participate in promotional events surrounding YAL-K's formal
launch (with a target date of June 2006). (We will fax to
NEA/ARPI a copy of the YAL brochure summarizing the
organization's purpose and action plan.)

"Youth" and Forum for the Future
--------------


6. Ambassador spoke with Dr. Rola Dashti the same day to get
more details on a topic Al-Ghunaim had mentioned but not
elaborated on -- Kuwait's role in implementing the "youth"
area of concentration of the Forum for the Future. Dashti
explained that Kuwait had lobbied for this area of
concentration to be added at the Bahrain Forum meeting, and
then agreed to take on the task of developing the theme. She
said that the Kuwait Economic Society, working with the YAL
chapter, is planning two conferences. The first would bring
both successful and unsuccessful young entrepreneurs from the
region together to compare experiences and to make
recommendations on how to improve the business climate.
This, she said, would complement the plans of the Fund for
the Future to finance SME projects. The second conference
would bring together young adults from the BMENA region to
discuss their "perceptions about the future," and document
how they see the future, how to change it, and then to bring
their recommendations to the next "Forum for the Future"
meeting in Jordan.


7. Dashti also described a new organization for 18-35 year
old Kuwaitis called the Kuwait Youth Organization, formed
under the auspices (for now) of the Kuwait Economic Society.
She views the organization as an alternative to Muslim
fundamentalist youth organizations and said that it already
had a capable borad and 75-80 members. Ambassador advised
that we would look forward to working with this organization,
through the MEPI small grants or other programs, and Dashti
said that she would help facilitate a meeting in the near
future. Dashti also mentioned that Microsoft had provided a
grant under its "Unlimited Potential" program to offer
computer literacy training to women and under-served
populations. She was in the process of finding appropriate
sites for the training.

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