The Qalaa Holdings Scholarship Foundation Celebrates 10 Years of existence

Qalaa Holdings recently commemorated the 10^th anniversary of its scholarship foundation and celebrated the achievements of 151 Egyptian youth. These studied abroad at some of the world's most prestigious universities and are contributing positively to the development of their country.

The Foundation, also Egypt's largest private-sector funded scholarship program, announced 13 students of its 10^th class to bring the total number of scholarships awarded up to 151 to-date.

"The Qalaa Holdings Scholarship Foundation is an organization that we hold very dear to our hearts as it encapsulates our belief in education and the potential of Egyptian youth. We are immensely gratified to be giving our 10^th class of talented scholars the opportunity to pursue their dreams through graduate study programs at elite universities across the globe," said Qalaa Holdings Chairman and Founder, Ahmed Heikal.

Established 10 years ago, the foundation was built with the aim of developing further the capabilities of the Youth through training and knowledge transfer initiatives. The structure ensures continuity and enables it to award approximately 15 Egyptian students each year with academic scholarships and the condition being that they return to work in Egypt upon graduation.

"I am deeply honored to report that these students have made us proud. Not only have they fulfilled their obligation to return home but many of them are now pioneering new industries such as solar energy, affecting public policy through work with government ministries and innovating in diverse fields from medicine, to architecture, archeology and conservation" said Heikal.

The 13 students who were awarded scholarships this year will be pursuing Masters degrees in cutting edge fields including Energy Law, Molecular Biotechnology, Subsea Engineering and Endovascular Neurosurgery among others at universities in the U.S., the UK, Italy, and the Netherlands.

Qalaa Holdings has always believed that the private sector should lead by example to help bring about more sustainable and inclusive growth in Egypt and the wider region. Earlier on the company moved beyond the traditional concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and charitable donations to incorporate the social dimension as part of their core activities by pursuing the types of responsible or impact investments that will foster inclusive growth. Even on the level of Qalaa's subsidiary companies, community development projects have focused on education on all levels including technical and vocational training as well as higher education.

This year an additional scholarship was also awarded personally by Qalaa Chairman and Founder Ahmed Heikal and his wife May to an Egyptian student to attend New York University (NYU). The first recipient of the annual May and Ahmed Heikal NYU Scholarship is, Ibrahim Shehata, who will be pursuing a graduate degree in Law.