Young UAE citizens and residents gained relevant work experience through aluminium giant.

United Arab Emirates, 21 August 2016: The annual Summer Training Programme at Emirates Global Aluminium (“EGA”) drew to a close on 11 August 2016, with a total of 22 students from high schools and universities across the country having benefited from one month’s real-life work experience at the company’s midstream aluminium businesses in the UAE. Of the group, 15 trainees majoring in Human Resources Management, Marketing and Finance were enrolled in relevant departments at Dubai Aluminium (“DUBAL” or Jebel Ali Operations). The other seven trainees were welcomed in the Capital Projects, Human Resources and Finance departments at Emirates Aluminium (“EMAL” or Al Taweelah Operations).

In line with a corporate commitment to making a positive impact in the communities surrounding its operations, the EGA Summer Training Programme gives UAE-based students business experience relevant to the discipline they are currently studying. Guidance is provided on recommended subjects to steer them towards a successful career path in their chosen disciplines. Participation in the Summer Training Programme is compulsory for all university students currently benefitting from the EGA Scholarship Programme, who are expected to spend up to five weeks working at EGA in at least two long vacations during their study period; and to join the business upon graduating.

This year’s Summer Training Programme attracted students from several prominent high schools and universities in the UAE. True to form, each student was assigned a specific supervisor for training and on-going support throughout the programme. For the first time, the Summer Training Programme included management competency training for the students through courses on presentation skills, communication skills and teamwork. On successfully completing the programme, each student received a certificate and a memento to commemorate their efforts.

Ahmed Al Shamsi (Executive Vice President, Human Capital) said: “At EGA, we are always on the look-out for talented young Emiratis who we believe can contribute positively to our company and the aluminium industry as a whole. We are also committed to enriching our community by sharing the wealth of experience and knowledge that EGA holds as a world leader in the global aluminium industry.

The EGA Summer Training Programme provides a platform to achieve both ambitions – in addition to giving students experience-based insight into professional life, the programme also enriches their skills base through knowledge-sharing and real-life application of their studies. At the same time, EGA has opportunities to identify potential scholarship students and develop prospective future employees.”

The latter highlights the integral role that the Summer Training Programme plays in EGA’s Emiratization strategy, whichaims to attract and retain both experienced candidates and entry level recruits. A range of initiatives are in place to implement the strategy, including highly competitive salary and benefit packages as well pre-employment training courses in various disciplines, advanced graduate training and accelerated development programmes. Internships are also offered to university students, with 45 interns having benefited from EGA’s Work Placement programme in 2015 alone.

“As a proudly UAE business, we support the ambitions of the country’s leadership – from investments in education to efforts aimed at achieving our Emiratization targets,” says Al Shamsi. “In line with the UAE Vision 2021, we are committed to hiring, growing and developing local talent to maximise our impact on the social and economic development of the nation.”