Kuwait City, 12 Oct: Zain has recently joined the National Leadership Institute (NLI)’s Breaking Barriers conference, which featured a group of inspiring speakers and notable experts from local, regional, and international levels, covering key topics like digital transformation, emerging technologies, and diversity & inclusion. The company sponsored the event, which came under the patronage of H.E. Minister of Finance Fahad Aljarallah.

The conference’s opening ceremony was attended by the representative of the event’s patron, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance Aseel Al Munaifi, as well as Zain Kuwait Chief Enterprise and Business Officer Hamad Al Marzouq, Zain Kuwait Chief Corporate Affairs and Relations Officer Waleed Al Khashti, General Manager of National Leaders Company Mohammad Al Khulaifi, and many executives and officials from the public and private sectors.

Zain’s participation in this distinguished event stemmed from its strong belief in the key role such insightful gatherings play in promoting innovation and the growth of people in the community. And so, the company was keen on being among the first to support NLI and its mission since its first conference back in 2021.

Zain joined one of the event’s main panels, where Zain Group Diversity & Inclusion Senior Manager Aysha Al Mudhaf shared some of the company’s most notable insights, initiatives, and achievements in the topics discussed by the conference. The event’s core themes were well-aligned with Zain’s own corporate goals, like the impact of digital transformation and emerging technologies on the economy, women in leadership, and diversity & inclusion in the workplace.

Today, Zain continues to enjoy the leadership position in the local market. This is true thanks to the company’s long-term strategic vision and early investment in digital transformation applications, were it empowered tens of state-level institutions to push forward their digital journeys, helping them bring better services and keep up with the fast-paced world of technology.

In addition, Zain, being a national company, is part of Kuwait’s wider Women Empowerment strategy, and the company takes special pride in reflecting the mature stage it has reached and the steps it has taken to translate its vision into objectives and achievements to empower more women in top executive management roles.

Zain is also proud of the fact that it is the first digital service provider and telecom operator in MENA to establish a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) department, where the company launches several awareness programs and initiatives and adopts new workplace policies to serve its strategic goals to become on of the most inclusive workplaces in the region.

The Breaking Barriers conference is the third annual event from the National Leadership Institute and has offered guests invaluable opportunities to attend keynotes, panel discussions, and workshops facilitated by a unique set of notable speakers, experts, and specialists in entrepreneurship, business, innovation, and technology.

This year's conference had a diverse set of international and local speakers. Among them was Tom Bilyeu, co-founder of Quest Nutrition; Jo Malone, a successful entrepreneur who turned a small venture into a globally recognized brand; Calum Chace, a specialist in artificial intelligence; Daniel Hulme, a leading expert in AI, emerging technologies, and the Metaverse; Sara Sabry, the first female Arab astronaut; and Graeme Codrington, who specializes in the Future of Work, and much more.

The National Leadership Institute (NLI) is an institute fully owned by the National Company for Educational Services and Training (NEST), a subsidiary of the National Technology Enterprises Company (NTEC). The NLI Conference Series was launched in 2021 to offer organizations in Kuwait an innovative training solution. In 2022 the conference was attended by over 1,100 participants from various international and local industries and corporations.

By supporting this conference, Zain aspires to reflect its growing commitment to pursue its corporate sustainability strategy and serve the community’s most vibrant sectors, including entrepreneurship, innovation, and youth. The company is keen on empowering intellectual growth by actively participating in academic forums and gatherings that bring about rich experiences and allow a constructive exchange of information for entrepreneurs, leaders, and community members.