National Aviation Services (NAS), the leading aviation services provider recently introduced its “Kuwaiti Future Leaders” (KFL) program under the guidance of the Kuwait Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGCA). KFL is a career development program, where 16 Kuwaiti graduates hired by the company will receive six months of intensive training to prepare them for different leadership roles in the aviation industry.
Mansour Al-Khezeim, General Manager, NAS Kuwait said, “NAS is currently present in over 17 countries and 45 airports, providing a range of aviation and airport services. While we may have expanded our geographic footprint across the Middle East, Asia and Africa, we continue to be rooted in Kuwait. As a Kuwaiti company, we believe it is our duty to give back to the local communities and the Kuwait Future Leaders program is one of our many initiatives targeted towards supporting the Kuwait DGCA and the vision of His Highness the Amir through the Kuwait National Development plan 2035.”
The event was attended by Engineer Emad Faleh Al Jelewi, Acting Director General of the General Administration of Civil Aviation, Hassan El-Houry, Group CEO, NAS, Adel Malallah, Chief Government Relations Officer, NAS Kuwait and other senior executives at NAS.
In a speech, Al-Jelewi emphasized that the DGCA and NAS are partners in success. He also added that human resource development is one of the most important foundations for success, and that NAS has is headed in the right direction for the development of Kuwaiti youth as leaders of the leaders.
The in-house training provided by NAS includes specialized courses delivered by experienced trainers from the aviation industry, on-the-job training as well as job shadowing to skilled supervisors and managers. These courses include airport operations, passenger handling, dangerous goods handling, airside and aviation safety leadership, project management, aviation language and business communication, customer service, as well as work values and ethics. The program also introduces four key innovation projects sponsored by NAS Directors, aimed at enhancing service levels and airport facilities in Kuwait.
In his vote of thanks, Malallah thanks the DGCA in Kuwait and Al-Jelewi for their ongoing support and guidance. He explained that the KFL is a rolling program with 16 youth inducted every six months. These youth will then be placed in suitable leadership positions across the NAS network, including Kuwait, UAE, Jordan, Morocco, India and Egypt. By training qualified individuals for fresh careers in the aviation industry, NAS also intends to prepare youth for upcoming opportunities at Kuwait International Airport’s new Terminal 2, slated to open by 2023 which is expected to create 15,000 new jobs.
Al-Khezeim highlighted “Highly qualified and trained Kuwaiti youth are an asset to the country. Through this program, we aim to have a larger number of Kuwaiti youth benefit from focused skills training and structured career development to contribute positively to the future of Kuwait and its people.”
NAS Kuwait is currently present in three out of the four airports in the country providing ground handling, cargo management, lounge management, meet and assist, terminal management, technology solutions, aviation training and travel solutions among others.
Al-Khezeim added, “The aviation industry in Kuwait is growing rapidly and we are pleased to support the efforts of the DGCA in Kuwait to develop it to its full potential. With the new airport, cargo city and local carriers taking off, the Kuwaiti aviation industry is definitely set to soar greater heights.”