Zain Group announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with the International Forum for Disability Management as the first telecommunications company in the Middle East and North Africa to join this global forum, which aims to build an inclusive world for people with disabilities where accessibility is available to all.
Zain revealed that this international partnership coincides with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities - December 3 each year - and coincides with the launch of a new series of initiatives aimed at inclusion for all, empowering, and integrating people with disabilities in the work environment, pointing out that these initiatives aim to create real transformations in the way it works to ensure that concepts of inclusion and integration are an integral part of its operational and strategic decisions, including employment, development, and procurement.
Zain, the company leading technological innovations in the markets of the Middle East and Africa, stated that the launch of these initiatives enhances the achievement of its strategy goals "WE ABLE 2030" that it launched to provide a work environment "inclusive and equitable for all" through a set of clear policies and programs, including ensuring the protection and empowerment of people with disabilities, and providing a work environment that removes barriers and provides equality of opportunity and facilitates access for all.
It is worth mentioning that the Disability Business Forum - which includes more than 600 international organizations – is one of the leading institutions in the field of integrating people with disabilities into business sectors, as it seeks to empower employment opportunities and products and services fairly, and the forum works in partnership with companies, government, and individuals with disabilities to remove barriers, aiming to help companies to be "disability smart" through offering practical and strategic solutions for their employment, retention, and offering inclusive products and services. The forum also influences policymakers based on the experiences of businesses and people with disabilities as employees and consumers.
This forum helps business communities by providing advice and support, advocating policies, developing solutions, self-assessment tools, and changing business practices, as it encourages making positive changes in practices of products and services and business policies that benefit both business sectors and people with disabilities.
The group indicated that this international partnership will help in developing its own initiatives to integrate accessibility standards in procurement and supply practices and enhances Zain's presence as a founding partner in global efforts aimed at building inclusive work environments, as Zain leads efforts to employ and integrate employees with disabilities, and develop policies that enhance fairness, and training programs based on the principles of inclusion for all.
The vice president and CEO of Zain Group, Bader Nasser Al Kharafi said "Zain Group is taking decisive steps to transform its vision WE ABLE 2030 into a practical business model that embodies real equal opportunities, and helps empower individuals with disabilities to make an active contribution in work environments and digital communities."
Al Kharafi explained "Zain is reshaping its mechanisms in employment, professional development, procurement, and community initiatives, to make the principle of universal access and integration of people with disabilities at the heart of its decisions, where the group has succeeded in transforming inclusion from a slogan into a tangible reality that enhances innovation and sustainability, as it seeks through its initiatives and international partnerships to achieve its strategic goal (permanent connection – a beautiful life)".
It is worth mentioning that the initiatives proposed by Zain in conjunction with the International Day for People with Disabilities target the integration of accessibility standards in the procurement sector, where Zain's procurement departments integrate the principles of comprehensive accessibility within the evaluation and accreditation system of suppliers, ensuring that the products, services, and solutions offered by the company are designed in a way that considers the needs of all users without exception, including people with disabilities, aiming to build a more equitable and broad innovation system for everyone.
The group revealed that it has opened registration to welcome a new batch of graduates from the 2026 GROW program for graduates with disabilities, and has launched an initiative to enhance professional development plans, to empower employees with disabilities, and to understand their professional aspirations, developmental needs, and skills, where these outputs are transformed into carefully designed individual development plans that align with the institutional competency system and business goals, ensuring clear and supported opportunities for their career growth and leadership experience acquisition, and achieving sustainable development.
The group also implemented several awareness workshops about the culture of dealing with people with disabilities, led by employees with disabilities across all its operations, while Zain volunteers through the Be My Eyes platform conducted a large number of successful calls during the last year.
Zain Group in its initiatives targets creating a work environment that is inclusive and easily accessible for people with disabilities, through designing training courses, and redesigning employment processes, aiming to ensure full inclusivity at touchpoints, and also published a special statement on reasonable accommodations across its employment websites to remove barriers for people with disabilities.
Zain invites graduates with disabilities to register in the GROW program via the link https://zain.com/en/grow
