GM Africa and the Middle East continues to play a key supporting role in inspiring future STEM leaders in the region as it accelerates its steps towards an all-electric future. As part of its recent efforts in this field, GM is collaborating with the Arab Youth Center – the platform aimed at embodying the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and President of the Center, to empower young people and provide them with the necessary support to develop their skills and culture Continuous innovation in the region, as part of the ‘Technical Fellowship for Arab Youth’ programme.
The Technical Fellowship Program for Arab Youth provides an opportunity for Arab youth active in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics to gain information and obtain professional guidance from prominent specialists within the various technical and digital sectors. More than 22,000 people from 21 countries in the region have benefited from the various ‘Arab Youth Center’ programmes.
The international auto manufacturer organized its first symposium on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Fellowship Programs, Future Mobility, Communications and Safety last Thursday, June 17th. The participants – 45 percent of whom were from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and 60 percent were women – got to know firsthand the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion, and the extent to which these advantages give companies to move forward into the future, in addition to learning about the prominent technological developments that shape the overall landscape. Within the automotive sector today, so is the role that General Motors plays in driving this process of change.
Commenting on this, Louay Al-Shurafa, President and CEO of General Motors Operations in Africa and the Middle East, said : “We are very pleased to partner with the Arab Youth Center to continue to inspire a new generation of Arab youth who will help lead and shape the technology and digital sectors in the region in a way that allows Better help our communities.”
He added, “Technologies are revolutionizing the automotive industry like never before, and General Motors is at the heart of this evolution. With a workforce in the Middle East of 40 percent in STEM roles, we consider ourselves to have the expertise And the capabilities to drive our all-electric future, but none of this can be achieved without our amazing team of engineers, both locally and internationally, who are the driving force for achieving GM’s vision of zero accidents, zero emissions, and zero congestion. Supporting and expanding STEM education among the next generation of young people is essential to achieving this goal.”
The future of skills
In turn, His Excellency Saeed Al Nazari, Director General of the Federal Youth Foundation and Chief Strategy Officer at the Arab Youth Center , stressed that the future is for young people who possess the specialized skills that make a difference and give young people the ability to innovate and create and develop new ideas and concepts that design future societies and develop various aspects of daily life such as smart and sustainable mobility. The use of the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence applications.
Al-Nazari added: “The Arab Youth Center is keen, in its programs and initiatives, to empower young people with the skills that enable them to develop themselves, achieve personal and professional success, and contribute to the economic and social development paths in their communities. In this context, the cooperation between the Center and General Motors, which is pioneering in creating solutions Mobility, a collaboration that enables young people through the Technical Fellowship Program for Arab Youth to possess the capabilities required to take advantage of digital job opportunities that constitute nine tenths of the fastest growing jobs in the world, as indicated in the “Future of Jobs” report issued by the World Economic Forum.
Ongoing commitment to inspiring the next generation of STEM leaders
من ناحيتها، قالت مونيكا هرنانديز، رئيس قسم الموارد البشرية لدى عمليات ’جنرال موتورز‘ في أفريقيا والشرق الأوسط: “نركّز في ’جنرال موتورز‘ بقوّة على دعم البرامج المرتبطة بالعلوم والتقنيات والهندسة والرياضيات في سعينا لتعزيز النمو الاقتصادي والاستدامة بين أوساط المجتمعات في المنطقة وحول العالم. وإلى جانب تعاوننا مع ’مركز الشباب العربي‘، نعتمد أيضاً برنامج الزمالة الهجينة حيث يستطيع طلّاب الجامعات والكلّيات في الإمارات العربية المتحدة الاستفادة على مدى العام من فرصة العمل عن قرب على مشاريع جديدة ومشوّقة بالتعاون مع ’جنرال موتورز أفريقيا والشرق الأوسط‘.”
يُذكَر أنه حتى اليوم، عقدت ’جنرال موتورز‘ ما يزيد عن 27 شراكة استراتيجية، ونظّمت 15 مناسبة مشترَكة ووظّفت حوالي 40 طالباً طموحاً عبر برامجها المرتبطة بمجالات STEM منذ العام 2016. ويبرز هذا واضحاً بين موظّفيها الحاليين في المنطقة الذين يضمّون نسبة 40 بالمائة من العاملين في مجالات مرتبطة بالعلوم والتقنيات والهندسة والرياضيات، مع المضي بتحقيق الرؤية المتميّزة التي تتمتّع بها ’جنرال موتورز‘ والمنطقة بالإجمال.
’جنرال موتورز‘ تغيّر وجه قطاع التنقّل
لطالما كانت ’جنرال موتورز‘ شركة بارزة بالابتكارات ضمن قطاع السيارات منذ ما يزيد عن 100 سنة، وهي تدفع دوماً بالحدود في مجالات النقل والتقنيات الحديثة. واليوم، تعيش الشركة وسط ثورة هامّة بقطاع التنقّل وهي تتمتّع برؤية رئيسية تسعى من خلالها للوصول إلى عالم بصفر حوادث وصفر انبعاثات وصفر ازدحام مروري. ويتمحور هدف ’جنرال موتورز‘ حول إيجاد عالم أفضل يتميّز بمزيد من الأمان والاستدامة وذلك من خلال التنقّل والتقنيات المتطوّرة.
وكانت الشركة قد أعلنت مؤخراً عن استثمارات ضخمة وتحقيق إنجازات بارزة ضمن هذا المجال؛ بما في ذلك استثمار بقيمة 35 مليار دولار أمريكي لتوفير 30 مركبة كهربائية (EV) جديدة بحلول العام 2025. ويأتي على رأس هذه العملية طرح طرازات ’جي إم سي هامر EV‘، ’شفروليه بولت EUV‘ و’كاديلاك ليريك‘. كما أطلقت ’جنرال موتورز‘ منصّتها المرنة لبطارية Ultium التي توفر الركائز الأساسية لكل شيء، بدءً من مركبات الإنتاج العام ضمن نطاق واسع، وصولاً إلى مركبات الأداء العالي، مما يعزّز أكثر موقعها كرائدة في مجال التنقّل المستقبلي.
حول هذا، قال غاري ويست، المدير التنفيذي لـ’أونستار‘ أفريقيا والشرق الأوسط وحلول التنقّل المستقبلية: “At GM, we want to help save lives, create a healthier planet for our children, and give customers the valuable time they deserve. This guides the business decisions we make every day, whether internationally or here in the Middle East. We are very active in Building this world by building on the three pillars of future mobility and achieving them effectively: the first is our commitment to a fully electric future, the second is that we are the only company with an integrated and comprehensive solution with the ability to produce autonomous vehicles on a large scale, and the third is the provision of services We are very excited about the future and are working to nurture the right STEM skills to be part of the future mobility era.”
