Etihad Airways has been announced as the official airline sponsor of WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017 - the biggest vocational education and skills excellence event in the world. The event will bring more than 3,000 competitors and industry experts from up to 75 countries to the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from 14 to 17 October 2017.
The 44th edition of the competition will
represent the first time that the event has been held in the Middle East and will
be the largest and most complex event to be hosted at the ADNEC in the lead up
to Expo 2020 Dubai.
WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017, which will be hosted by
the Abu Dhabi Center for Technical and Vocational Education and Training
(ACTVET), aims to increase the prestige of vocational careers by challenging
young people to become the best in the skill of their choice. The competition is a major coup for Abu Dhabi
as the emirate continues to transition into a diversified knowledge-based
economy in line with the Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030.
His Excellency Mubarak Saeed Al
Shamsi, Director General of ACTVET and official delegate of the UAE to
WorldSkills, said: “We are extremely
proud to welcome the world’s greatest skills excellence competition to the
Middle East for the first time. WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017 represents our
strong commitment to vocational and technological education and training for
the young people of the UAE today, helping them build a thriving and diverse
economy for the generations of tomorrow. We look forward to working with
Etihad Airways to ensure the competition is a resounding success.”
The WorldSkills
participants represent the best of their peers and are selected from skill
competitions in member countries and regions across the globe. Almost 2,300
participants and experts took part in the 2015 edition of the competition which
was held in Sao Paolo, Brazil, whilst thousands more visited the six-day event.
Other host cities in recent years have included Leipzig, London and Calgary.
Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said: “It
is a great honour to be named as an official partner of such a prestigious
competition. Abu Dhabi is a thoroughly
modern city which is fast becoming one of the world’s most exciting commercial
and tourism hubs. The event will provide
the perfect opportunity for those attending to experience the very best of
Arabian hospitality whilst enjoying state of the art facilities and modern
infrastructure in a thriving and cosmopolitan city.”
Hala Abu Dhabi, the destination management division of Etihad Airways,
has been named as the competition’s Customer Service Management. Hala will develop and deliver packages for
all those attending the event as well as offer on-ground customer services
including staffing, transport and excursions.
Mohammed Al Bulooki, Etihad Airways’ Vice President – UAE Commercial, said:
“The competition will provide a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase everything
that Abu Dhabi has to offer to leisure and business travellers alike. Abu
Dhabi, as a city dedicated to continued investment in the workforce of
tomorrow, is the perfect location for the renowned competition: Hala Abu Dhabi
looks forward to welcoming participants from across the world to our home city
and working with ACTVET and WorldSkills to ensure that the event is a
resounding success.”
WorldSkills covers a
wide range of industries including construction, creative arts and fashion,
information and communication technology, manufacturing and engineering, social
and personal services and transport.