KUWAIT: Gulf Bank's corporate social responsibility (CSR) was awarded the 'Special CSR Award' at the Arabian Business Awards Kuwait 2016 on 2 May at the Jumeriah Messilah Beach Hotel.

Mr César González-Bueno, Gulf Bank Chief Executive Officer said: "We are very pleased that our corporate social responsibility program has been recognized by Arabian Business, a leading weekly bi-lingual business magazine in the Gulf. This award reinforces the position of Gulf Bank as a leader in the field of social responsibility, each year our CSR program supports a variety of initiatives, related to youth empowerment; education; health and fitness; as well as culture and community service. I would like to thank Arabian Business magazine, as well as the staff and our community partners who work to ensure the quality and breadth of our CSR program."

Gulf Bank's CSR programs cover a range of areas, some of the main areas are outlined as follows. To address one of the most important strategic challenges for our country, and the region, Gulf Bank has undertaken a number of youth education and skills development programs. One of our major yearly sponsorships is our ongoing partnerships with INJAZ Kuwait, with a high level of employees volunteering their time to help INJAZ deliver Arabic and English language education programs on entrepreneurial and leadership skills to encourage high school and university students to build successful careers.

The Banks also sponsors the National Union of Kuwaiti Students (NUKS) conference in the USA, where it delivers skills and entrepreneurial workshops to attendees. It also sponsored the Tmkeen Youth Empowerment Symposium, a Kuwaiti entrepreneurship initiative created and delivered by Kuwaiti youth to the youth in Kuwait. In order to reach out the government and its young employees, the Bank sponsored the 'Jahazeen 2' training and development program, which was developed in cooperation with Kuwaiti's Manpower and Government Restructuring Program (MGRP) to provide skills training to young employees.

Health and fitness is another key element of the Bank's initiatives. Last November, the Bank sponsored the 'Gulf Bank 642 Marathon' Kuwait's first and only full road race to be internationally accredited by the world's governing body for marathons. The 'Gulf Bank 642 Marathon' was designed to appeal to all ages groups and fitness levels, both walking and running lengths (5km, 10km, 21km, and 42Km). The three longer distance categories now appear in the international calendar of races. The event was well received with 2,400 participants representing over 74 nationalities. It will be held this year on 19 November at Souq Sharq, again with the aim of promoting a healthy lifestyle.

In order to support Kuwaiti tradition and culture, Gulf Bank sponsors the "Memorial Journey of Pearl Diving", an important Kuwaiti heritage event. This festival is a tribute to Kuwait's cultural and economic heritage and aims to teach the younger generations about the lives of their forefathers.

Arabian Business launched in 2000 and has since become the market-leading magazine in the Middle East, with a readership of more than 2 million per month. Arabian Business Awards Kuwait was launched 2010, to celebrate the excellence of the region's companies and leaders through focusing on individual countries. The Kuwait awards celebrate the vibrant and highly influential Kuwait business community by recognizing accomplishments in a variety of categories. Nominations are received through their website, www.arabianbusiness.com with the winners being selected by an independent panel of judges to ensure the integrity of the awards and to acknowledge only those who are truly deserving of the accolade.

To learn more about Gulf Bank's CSR activities, products and services, visit one of Gulf Bank's 56 branches; call the Customer Contact Center on 1805805, or log on to www.e-gulfbank.com, Gulf Bank's bilingual website.