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Within its strategy for the current year, the Ghabbour Foundation for Development has taken it upon itself to focus on establishing training workshops and curricula, pertinent to the green technology, whether in the field of electric cars, heavy transport vehicles with modern exhaust technology, or environmentally friendly car paints. It also aims at creating job opportunities for graduates abroad, with investments amounting to EGP 50 million, in addition to funding from international grants.

This year the Foundation aims at providing the technicians with the skills necessary for the future green jobs, as this comes through the grant provided by the Investment for Employment’s initiative, which was funded by the KFW Development Bank in March 2023, in cooperation with Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). This initiative is believed to enable the Foundation to establish the necessary high-tech workshops, as well as purchase advanced equipment. In addition, the Foundation has another cooperation with HSBC Bank Egypt, to sponsor a number of students, who are specialized in the field of electric cars.

Moreover, the Foundation is currently working on opening the doors of international jobs for its graduates, by communicating with companies and chambers of industry and commerce in Europe and the Gulf countries, with the aim of changing the stereotype of the Egyptian workers abroad.

Aleya Serageldin, Executive Director of the Ghabbour Foundation for Development, confirmed in an exclusive interview with CSR Egypt that the Foundation is striving to contribute to achieving sustainability, by training young people of both genders on the skills needed for green jobs, which basically hinge on the modern technologies that reduce toxic emissions.

She added that all of these endeavors are conducted in the hope of creating skilled technical competencies, capable of localizing these industries and carrying out the necessary maintenance for vehicles that operate on clean energy. She also clarified that the lack of technicians, specialized in this field, is one of the main obstacles facing those who are about to purchase such vehicles, and underscored that the provision of such employment, whether in Egypt or overseas, supports Egypt’s plan to spread environmentally friendly vehicles, and hence achieve sustainability plans.

Also, Serageldin revealed that the Foundation targets that the number of students benefiting from its technical schools would reach 1,030, by the beginning of September 2023, noting that the number of graduates of the Foundation has already reached 500 students since the graduation of the first batch in 2020, and that 830 students are currently studying at Ghabbour’s Applied Technology Schools.

With regard to areas of cooperation, she also stated that the Foundation is always keen to cooperate with various partners, in order to develop the society, as she referred to the cooperation with the Banque Misr Foundation for Community Development, especially while supporting underprivileged students.

She also brought forward the cooperation with Starchem and Hamed El Shiaty Foundation in the field of supporting automotive paint studentsand with ALEXBANK in the field of supporting and empowering girls through the “Ghalya by Ghabbour” initiative

She also added that there is another cooperation with the Goethe-Institute in the field of promoting the study of the German language in schools, and the Goodyear Middle East and Africa Company in the field of tire maintenance and support for female technicians.

She revealed that the Foundation is in the process of cooperating with the global Volvo Group to support the transport vehicle sector, as well as motivate girls to start joining this specialization.

 

Ghabbour’s community and development contributions to supporting women

 

In conjunction with Women’s Month, Serageldin has also stated that, unprecedentedly, in the field of automotive vocational education in Egypt, the Foundation opened its doors to girls during the academic year of 2021-2022, to fulfill their dream of being the first batch of highly qualified automotive technicians.

She affirmed the Foundation’s commitment to providing all the necessary support to these girls, and offering them opportunities for self-development that achieve their unique ambitions and potentially a safe, growth-stimulating, and healthy competitive environment.

She reiterated that in pursuit of an integrated program to empower women and achieve gender equality in the workplace, the Foundation cooperated with ALEXBANK to curate their joint initiative, for a period of three years, which came under the name of “Ghalya by Ghabbour”.

In fact, this initiative came under the auspices of the National Council for Women, and it aimed to support and empower female students, who are enrolled in the applied technology schools that are run by the Ghabbour Foundation, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Technical Education, in order to achieve Egypt’s Vision 2030, along with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), related to quality education, gender equality, decent work, economic growth, and the reduction of discrimination.

She also revealed the current number of female beneficiaries at Ghabbour Schools of Applied Technology, which amounts to 120 students out of 830 students as a total. She made clear that the Foundation is interested in hiring distinguished female engineers in the field of auto mechanics as trainers in the schools. As according to her, these trainers set a good example for the rest of the girls, and are the best evidence of women’s competence in this field.

She has also highlighted the fact that in 2017, the company decided to dedicate its societal efforts to the field of technical education and vocational training. This step was led by its late Founder, Dr. Raouf Ghabbour. The company had a firm belief that reforming education, at large, is a fundamental solution to all the problems facing Egypt, especially technical education, on which the industry as a whole is based.

Hence, the idea of establishing the Ghabbour Foundation for Development came, as a non-profit organization, established under the umbrella of the Ministry of Social Solidarity with the aim of contributing to the positive economic and social development in Egypt by bridging the gap between the quality of vocational education in Egypt on the one hand, and the industry’s needs for skilled labor on the other.

The Foundation, has so far developed 5 technical schools and training centers in 4 governorates; Cairo, Giza, Alexandria and Gharbia, since its establishment in 2017, with cumulative investments amounting to EGP 144 million, and with approximately 830 male and female students currently enrolled., Students are taught by more than 100 qualified teachers and trainers, in accordance with international standards, and more than 500 graduates have graduated from these schools, so far.

The Ghabbour Foundation also offers a comprehensive development methodology by providing the German dual education system through a partnership with its international academic partner; Saxony International School, (SIS ME) and accreditation from the German-Arab Chamber of Industry and Commerce, while also focusing on the personal and professional development of trainees at its schools, which leads to the empowerment of qualified technicians to change them into distinguished individuals in the community.

Generally, the Ghabbour Foundation continuously collaborates with other leading organizations in the industry to provide optimal training and employment opportunities for its students and alumni.

It is also noteworthy that GB Auto, currently GB Corp, is a company that has a significant presence in the field of social responsibility in many areas, including supporting cancer patients, orphans, debtors, and the field of education.