Switzerland-based IMD, one of the world’s top-ranked business schools, has announced a unique scholarship for a young Arab entrepreneur to attend IMD’s prestigious executive education program, Orchestrating Winning Performance (OWP).

The scholarship, inspired by the ‘Celebration of Entrepreneurship’ event in Dubai and supported by Riyada Enterprise Development (RED) – a small and medium enterprise investment platform, has been won by 34-year-old Egyptian Ahmed Kabeel.

Kabeel is founder and CEO of OMS, a regional company and one of Egypt’s top IT-service exporters with more than 170 employees and clients in 21 countries in the Middle East and Africa.

Kabeel, who started his career at the age of 18 as a salesman in a computer company, will take part in OWP at the IMD’s campus in Lausanne, Switzerland, in June, together with 450 other executives from companies around the world.

“The Celebration of Entrepreneurship has inspired us to offer this scholarship funded by both IMD and Riyada. We hope that this small contribution will support and stimulate entrepreneurship in the region, and will be the beginning of a trend to encourage training for entrepreneurs in this fast-growing region,” said IMD executive director Dr Hischam El-Agamy.

“OWP is our global business programme for individuals and teams from all types of organizations, from startups and multinationals to non-profit organizations, and from every industry,” Dr El-Agamy explained.

'It’s aimed at executives who are seeking the latest management thinking, and practical, innovative solutions for their businesses. It allows them to anticipate global business trends, boost performance, broaden perspectives and expand their network,' he added.

IMD offers similar scholarships to young entrepreneurs from Africa and India and other parts of the world.

“We are really proud to be joining with IMD to offer this scholarship to a young Middle Eastern entrepreneur,” said Fred Sicre, executive director at Abraaj Capital, of which Red is a subsidiary.

“This is exactly what our region needs: young, talented entrepreneurs who are given the chance to expand their horizons and learn from the experience of others. This empowers potential and enhances the entrepreneurial spirit of our societies,” he noted.-TradeArabia News Service