Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Fund, TAGorg Sign Four Agreements

The collaboration will provide opportunities to women and assist them in developing and enhancing their businesses

EASTERN PROVINCE, SAUDI ARABIA --- January 7, 2008 --- The Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Fund for Supporting Small Business Projects for Women and a number of member firms of the Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAGorg) signed four agreements on January 6, 2008 that aim at enhancing cooperation between the parties in various fields.

This collaboration will provide opportunities to women, members in the Fund, and assist them in developing and enhancing their businesses and in finding competitive job opportunities in the local market.

The agreements were signed by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed Bin Fahed Bin Abdul Aziz, Emir of the Eastern Province and Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, TAGorg chairman and CEO.

The first agreement includes the training of women to acquire the necessary skills regarding the M/SME Toolbox and qualifying them as trainers in this field in order to assume their role in training beneficiaries of the Funds activities.

Meanwhile, the second agreement stipulates the execution of feasibility studies for projects supported by the Fund, following up on the implementation phase and analyzing their results.

As for the third agreement, it includes auditing the Funds accounts, paying Zakat (i.e. alms), offering professional consultation related to assisting the Funds administration in applying an effective control system, applying the accredited accounting standards and improving the level of writing and preparing administrative and financial reports.

Finally, the fourth agreement stipulates the conduction of a feasibility study for the set-up of a commercial complex in Al Khobar city, one of the main cities in the Eastern Province. The study will include market and technical indicators necessary for the establishment of the project.

Following the signing, HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz expressed his gratitude and appreciation to HRH Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz for his
 

adoption of the Funds cause, stating that the leadership in the Kingdom is keen on ensuring that women play a role in the social and economic development through all development programs that exist in the Kingdom.

"The Fund is only an example of the support that the Saudi woman enjoys under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz," HRH said.

HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz confirmed that the opportunity is open for every Saudi woman to benefit from the programs included within these agreements and from the services that accompany them.     

On his part, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh extended his gratitude to HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz for granting such opportunity for TAGorg to serve the Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Fund for Supporting Small Projects for Women, confirming that the Organization will work on implementing the agreements with the utmost accuracy.

Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh underlined the existing cooperation between TAGorg and the M/SME Toolbox, an affiliate of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). He also expressed readiness to offer training and qualification programs to Saudi women, such as the IT skills training program, which is offered by the Abu-Ghazaleh Cambridge Information Technology Skills Center, accredited by the Cambridge Board of Examinations and supervised by highly-qualified trainers.

At the end of the signing ceremony, Mr. Abu-Ghazaleh presented a shield to HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz as a gesture of appreciation for the opportunity given to the Organization to serve the Fund.