News
The Center for Gulf Studies (CGS) at the American University of Kuwait (AUK) hosted Dr. Steffen Hertog, Senior Lecturer of Comparative Politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science, to give his insight in a public lecture entitled "Diversified But Marginal: The GCC Private Sector as an Economic and Political Force". The lecture, which took place at the AUK campus, discussed the main reasons why the private sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries appeared to be successful in terms of employment generation, capital formation, and economic diversification, yet remains politically marginalized and largely dependent on the state.
Dr. Hertog attributed this phenomenon to the nature of the rentier state that characterizes most GCC economies and state structures. The GCC state is the primary driver of demand, and state spending is the main driver for economic growth within the private sector. The lack of taxes has decoupled the private sector from the state, creating a one-sided relationship where the private sector is dependent on the state and does not contribute to the financing of public services.
Another factor leading to the marginalization of private sectors, according to Dr. Hertog, is the rigid divide in the foreign and local employment forces, as well as, the public and private wealth. The private sector employs mostly foreign workers and contributes little to national employment; which dominates the public sector. State-owned enterprises usually provide the most productive jobs for nationals, who, in turn, fuel consumer demand. As most wealth is privately held, the private sector also offers few investment opportunities for citizens, compromising the linkages to the national population at large. This vicious cycle is the main reason why local businesses experience marginalization in economic policy-making and politics.
In order to alter the status quo, Dr. Hertog outlined several options available for the private sector to adopt. These include: an acceptance of taxation, the reforming of corporate governance, and most importantly, an increase in the employment of nationals through increased use of technology and improved human resources. Employing more nationals in the private sector, however, will also require a change in state policy to reduce the incentives among the local population for seeking public employment.
Concluding the discussion with a series of questions from the audience, Dr. Hertog touched on several topics, including the available statistics about business sizes in the GCC, the correlation between democratic practice in GCC states and private sector involvement in public policies.
Dr. Steffen Hertog is a senior lecturer in comparative politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He was previously Kuwait Professor at the Chaire Moyen Orient at Sciences Po/Paris. His research interests include Gulf politics, Middle East political economy, political violence, and radicalization. Dr. Hertog has also been published in numerous prestigious journals. His book Princes, Brokers and Bureaucrats: Oil and State in Saudi Arabia was published by Cornell University Press in 2010.
The Center for Gulf Studies (CGS) at the American University of Kuwait aims to promote greater cultural understanding of and increased intellectual interest in the Gulf, by facilitating free and open academic discourse on a range of issues that both shape and challenge this critical region of the world. The goal of the CGS is to enable scholars, as well as political and civil society actors, both within and outside the region to contribute and add value to the burgeoning field of Gulf Studies, while at the same time informing and engaging the general public. To this end, the CGS encourages, supports, and cultivates interesting and original research on the Gulf, while regularly organizing a variety of public academic events such as lectures, roundtable discussions, and conferences. For more information about CGS, visit www.auk.edu.kw/cgs/project_lectures_kuwait.jsp
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 11th October 2012
Photography by the Office of Public Affairs (C) 2012
Thirty Chief and Senior Executives of KIPCO Group companies gathered together in Kuwait on October 1st.
The executives attending the meeting - representing companies from across the Middle East, North Africa and Asia and operating in sectors such as financial services, media, real estate and insurance - discussed ways to increase cooperation and promote synergy. The meeting was held at the Chairman's Club in Burgan Bank Tower.
Addressing the meeting, KIPCO's Group Chief Operating Officer, Samer Khanachet, said: "The KIPCO Group comprises companies operating in 26 countries across the world. Our meeting brings together the Chief Executives of all our companies to share ideas and ways of working together. The KIPCO Group is able to draw upon a uniquely deep reservoir of experience and expertise that helps it successfully meet its challenges and take advantage of its opportunities." The KIPCO Group is one of the biggest diversified holding companies in the Middle East and North Africa, with consolidated assets of US$ 22.1 billion as at 30 June, 2012. The Group has significant ownership interests in over 60 companies operating across 26 countries. The group' main business sectors are financial services, media, real estate and industry. Through its core companies, subsidiaries and affiliates, KIPCO also has interests in the education and medical sectors.
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 8th October 2012
The Indian Educational School of Kuwait (IES) hosted AUK President, Dr. Winfred Thompson, as their Chief Guest to their third annual KQ (Knowledge Quotient) Matters quiz. The event was held on September 21st 2012 at 6:30 pm. KQ Matters is an inter-school competition for students. It is one of a kind competition that gives learners a chance to recall what they studied and preserved in their memories. During the event, Dr. Thompson handed the prizes to the competition finalists and gave a speech addressing the IES principle, students, and general audience.
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 25th September 2012
Dr. George Irani, AUK Associate Professor of International Relations, appeared on Kuwait TV's "The Road to the White house". This is a weekly show, hosted by Dr. Abdullah Shayji, that looks closely at the US presidential elections. During his talk, Irani analysed the effects of the September 2012 political events on the flow of the the US presidential elections. Accoding to Irani, the anti-Islam movie and the outrage it triggered in the Middle East during the 9/11 anniversary is a demonstraition of US policy faliure in the Arab world. Irani also stated that the Obama admistration failed to connect with the Arab and Muslim World. But this, in his opnion, will not have a signigicant effect on the US internal political situation or on the presidential campaign.
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 25th September 2012
AUK President Dr. Winfred Thompson received the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to Kuwait H.E. Mr. Damien Angelet on a visit to AUK on Tuesday September 18th. The meeting covered a wide array of topics, including opportunities of cultural and educational collaboration between AUK and Belgian institutions. "The Ambassador and I had a very positive meeting exploring opportunities for cooperation between Belgian educational and cultural institutions and the American University of Kuwait", Said Thompson.
The Kingdom of Belgium is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organizations such as NATO. Belgium covers an area of 30,528 square kilometers, and it has a population of about 11 million people.
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 19th September 2012
Photography by the Office of Public Affairs (C) 2012
After months of preparations for the new academic year 2012-2013, the American University of Kuwait opened its doors to new and returning students on the 16th of September, marking the official commencement of its 9th academic year.
In a general assembly for AUK faculty and staff, Dr. Winfred Thompson, AUK President, congratulated the AUK community for acquiring the Private University Council (PUC) accreditation for a 4-year period and urged everyone to continue "efforts to improve the academic quality of the institution generally and the academic programs in particular". "Our primary goal is to improve the overall experience that students have at AUK", said Thompson.
Acting Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Nizar Hamzeh, announced that "This year AUK is welcoming 15 new fulltime faculty members, to have a total of 117 fulltime faculty members in the College of Arts and Sciences, College of Business and Economics and the Intensive English Program." He added, "the Academic Advising Center has spent the summer welcoming new freshman and transfer students to AUK in our new and improved SOAR (Student Orientation, Advising, and Registration) event. "The Office of the Registrar has been busy facilitating student registrations", said Hamzeh.
Amal Al Binali, Assistant to the President for Admissions and Public Affairs, pointed out that the University has filled all offered places for the Fall Semester. "The office of admissions admitted 789 students out of which 560 have registered for the Fall 2012 classes, including 257 scholarship students", said Al-Binali. "The current admission cycle has brought in students with high academic standards. The average high school GPA of newly enrolled freshman students is 3.10 and 2.80 for Transfer Students".
The AUK Office of Student Affairs is organizing a variety of events to introduce new students to University life, and get them well acquainted with the different AUK activities and services including, student employment, recreational activities, and sports. The first week of the semester will witness the Annual Welcome Week, a yearly event organized by the Office of Student Life to celebrate the new academic year. The week will include several on-campus and off-campus recreational activities for students.
The different AUK departments have been running at full capacity to insure that all university functions and resources have been optimized to cater for the arriving students and faculty members. This year, AUK has initiated a campus renovation plan that includes the development and maintenance of facades, facilities, classrooms and laboratories. Campus enhancement plans have been implemented to insure that students have all the facilities necessary for a successful year.
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 18th September 2012
Photography by the Office of Public Affairs (C) 2012
Kevork Awakimian is one of five students who made the journey from the American University of Kuwait (AUK) to Hanover this summer as part of the Dartmouth College-AUK Program internship program. "This internship is the best experience that I have had in my life," says Awakimian.
The cross-cultural internship program is one of many programs that link Dartmouth and AUK-a collaboration that began in 2003. Dartmouth serves as an advisory partner to AUK, a private liberal arts institution with an enrollment of approximately 2,000 students. Since its inception, the internship program has brought 24 AUK students to Dartmouth and sent 24 Dartmouth students to AUK.
Two of this summer's AUK interns, Yousef Abdul-Husain and Helene Georges El Neaman, had hands-on experience working in the Hood Museum of Art, the Office of Public Affairs, and the Media Production Group. "We got a taste of everything," says El Neaman, a double major in graphic design and computer engineering at AUK. "A taste of curating, of design, and of videography, all in one month."
As part of their work with both the Office of Public Affairs and the Media Production Group, Abdul-Husain and El Neaman produced the video below, capturing part of their Dartmouth experience this summer. For Abdul-Husain, a communications major, the opportunity to work in video production-a hobby of his-was one of the reasons he applied for the internship. "That's what sealed the deal," he says.
A management major with a minor in international relations, Awakimian worked with the Rassias Center for World Languages during his time at Dartmouth, assisting one of the program's Arabic master teachers. Awakimian was thrilled with the achievements of his students, most of whom were familiar with reading and translating Arabic, but not with speaking it.
"The first few days, they were talking like 2-year-olds, like a person who had just started talking," says Awakimian. "On the last day, one of my students, without preparing, went on stage and started speaking Arabic. This person could not speak a full sentence when he first came here, and now he's speaking Arabic."
While he is proud of his students' achievements, Awakimian is also grateful for the impact the professional and cultural experience at Dartmouth has had on his own life. "It was a challenge and improved my self confidence," he says.
The internship class also included Wadhah Al-Dalama and Eman Karam, who participated in the two-week Secure Information Systems and Mentoring Program (SISMAT) offered through Dartmouth's Institute for Security, Technology, and Society. The two-week program trains students in cyber security tools. Both women majored in information systems at AUK and participated in the Microsoft Imagine Cup finals in Kuwait.
AUK's participation in SISMAT grew from another aspect of Dartmouth's relationship with AUK-the Faculty Fellows Program. Each year, a faculty member from AUK can come to Dartmouth to advance his or her scholarship. In 2010, AUK Associate Professor of Computer Science Amir Zeid worked with George Cybenko, the Dorothy and Walter Gramm Professor of Engineering, in a range of areas, including gender studies and computer science.
Speaking with Denise Anthony, associate professor of sociology, Zeid observed that roughly 40 percent of computer science majors at AUK were women. In an attempt to find out why more women in Kuwait than in the United States major in this field, Zeid, Anthony, and the Dartmouth-AUK Office arranged a series of web conferences between female computer science majors at Dartmouth and at AUK.
Coordinated by AUK administrator Rehab El-Bahey with assistance from Dartmouth-AUK intern Christina Chen '12, the conversations encouraged Anthony to offer two places in the SISMAT program to qualified AUK computer engineering majors.
Zeid continues to work with applicants to the program, with his faculty colleague Mohammad Awad, who spent summer 2011 at Dartmouth as an AUK Faculty Fellow.
Mohammad El Abd, also an assistant professor of computer engineering at AUK, became the fourth AUK faculty member to hold the Fellowship since its inception in 2009. El Abd, whose research includes developing computer algorithms that target human disease processes, worked with Jason H. Moore, the Third Century Professor of Genetics and director of Dartmouth's Institute for Quantitative Biomedical Sciences (iQBS), this summer.
"These collaborative programs with emerging universities are tremendously important in the sense that they give us an on-the-ground view of what is emerging, what is important, and what subject matters are most meaningful in certain parts of the world," says Laurel Stavis, former executive director of the Dartmouth-AUK Program, who recently transitioned to a new position at Dartmouth as assistant provost for international initiatives.
The impact of the Dartmouth-AUK Program stretched across campus this summer, from the editing room of the Media Production Group to the classrooms of the Rassias Center to the computer labs of the SISMAT program. "I think for everybody involved it has been a very significant experience," says Dale Eickelman, the Ralph and Richard Lazarus Professor of Anthropology and Human Relations and the relationship coordinator for the Dartmouth-AUK Program.
"Dartmouth is a life changer," says El Neaman. "It has helped me set goals and given me a bigger picture of the world."
Awakimian plans to encourage his peers at AUK to apply for the internship program. "It's hard to explain the feeling that you get, the experience you get," he says. "I can't picture it for them, but they have to come see it."
Article Courtesy of Chrissy Pearson - Dartmouth Now
now.dartmouth.edu/2012/09/students-and-faculty-from-kuwait-share-knowledge-creativity/
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 18th September 2012
KidZania Kuwait, the family entertainment park opening later this year, is pleased to announce that the American University of Kuwait (AUK) is joining its growing family of leading marketing partners. AUK, the influential American University in Kuwait, is sponsoring the University establishment within the children' city that is due to open in The Avenues' exciting Phase III expansion, operated by leading international franchiser M. H. Alshaya.
The AUK establishment within KidZania Kuwait will be an integral aspect of the child-sized world. It will provide children with an interactive setting and, through role-play as university students, the chance to pursue a degree in many fields including architecture, healthcare sciences and art. Upon completion of their university course, they will receive a Bachelor's, Master's or PhD degree certificate. By being more qualified academically, children will be able to earn extra kidZos, KidZania's official currency, and improve their career prospects in the park.
"AUK is proud to partner with KidZania Kuwait to be the only university in the child-sized city. We are excited to be contributing to the growth and development of Kuwait's youth by providing knowledge, self-awareness and personal growth experiences that can enhance critical thinking, effective communication and respect for diversity," said Shaikha Dana Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, Chairwoman of United Education Company (UEC) and Founder and Chair, Board of Trustees of AUK. "We also see this partnership as a valuable opportunity to connect with our prospective students and to encourage them to become leaders and life-long learners who aspire to the highest standards of moral and ethical responsibility in their societies."
Commenting on the new partnership, Vice President of the Leisure and Entertainment Division at M.H. Alshaya, Fernando Medroa said: "We are delighted to have AUK on board KidZania Kuwait. We believe our partnership with AUK is a perfect fit with our values and will provide our customers and their children with an exceptional experience that not only enables children to be immersed in a real university environment, but also teaches them the importance of academia. Our growing number of marketing partnerships, and their unique establishment in KidZania Kuwait, provide an enriching and positive experience for children, all within a fun and interactive environment."
About KidZania:
Much more than a children's museum or family entertainment center, KidZania takes interactive entertainment and learning to an entirely new level by combining role playing with real life. KidZania creates a kid-centric city experience designed to educate and inspire 4 to 14-year olds - from arriving at the airport, to visiting a city center to exploring the city streets. We replicate the real world in a safe and self-contained over 7,000 square meter kid-sized city. As in the real world, children choose activities - such as being a police officer, doctor, journalist or a shopkeeper - and earn money which they can then spend or save. KidZania operates just like a real city complete with buildings, paved streets, vehicles, a functioning economy and recognizable destinations in the form of "establishments" sponsored and branded by leading multi-national and local brands. The facilities are designed to educate through experience, fostering the development of life skills, but from a kid perspective - it's all about fun.
KidZania, Inc., headquartered in Mexico, is privately held. This award-winning concept is recognized globally for its unique blend of entertainment and education for children. The first KidZania opened in Mexico City in 1999. There are eight other locations including, Monterrey, Mexico; Tokyo, Jakarta, Koshien, Lisbon, Dubai, Seoul, and Kuala Lumpur. To date, more than 20 million kids and parents have visited the facilities globally. The trajectory continues with 13 facilities in development, including a new facility in Mexico City where kids can drive from point-to-point.
KidZania Kuwait is a (7,000 square meter) facility, located in the Phase III extension of The Avenues. For more information about KidZania and the facility locations, visit www.KidZania.com
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 3rd September 2012
Dr. Hesham Al Awadi, Associate Professor of History & International Relations at the American University of Kuwait, participated in a panel discussion about Muslim Brothers in power hosted by the Media Salon earlier this week.
The panel shed light on the history of the Muslim Brotherhood movement, which recently gained political power in the Arab Spring countries, most notably in Egypt. The event hosted political science experts and politicians.
Based on his research in the field, Dr. Al Awadi tackled the issue of Muslim Brotherhood from a scientific aspect. He provided a chronological analysis of the different milestones in the history of Muslim Brotherhood until they came to power.
Commenting on the challenges faced by the new Egyptian President Dr. Mohammed Morsi, Dr. Al- Awadi said that the ability to move from the seat of opposition to the seat of presidency is one major challenge. Other challenges include the transition from the philosophy of the Muslim Brotherhood to the philosophy of head of state; and the establishment of new relations with the Gulf States, who have been supportive of Mubarak.
The panel discussion involved rich inputs by the audience, who shared anticipation and worries about the arrival of the Muslim Brotherhood to power. One of the concerns raised during the discussion was the stance of Muslim Brotherhood on Arab nationalism and whether Muslim Brotherhood would resist this direction. On the other hand, some people wondered why some are trying to demonize the Muslim Brotherhood rather than reaching reconciliation between the different regimes.
For more details about the panel discussion, please refer to the following newspaper links:
Al Anbaa:
www.alanba.com.kw/ar/kuwait-news/306534/04-07-2012/
Al Watan
alwatan.kuwait.tt/articledetails.aspx?Id=205809&YearQuarter=20123
Al Qabas
www.alqabas.com.kw/node/88332
Al Seyassah
www.alseyassah.com/AtricleView/tabid/59/smid/438/ArticleID/198949/reftab/36/Default.aspx
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 5th July 2012
Dr. Mohsen Bagnied, Division Head of Business & Economics at the American University of Kuwait, participated in a panel discussion entitled "After the Arab Spring", hosted by the Media Salon last week.
The panel discussed the different economic, political, and media changes associated with the Arab Spring era. The event hosted experts in the fields of economics, political science, and media.
During his talk, Dr. Bagnied provided analysis and anticipation of the Arab economic situation following the Arab Spring era. According to Dr. Bagnied, the Arab economy, excluding that of the GCC, had significantly deteriorated in the years preceding the Arab uprising waves. Although the Arab countries possess considerable human and natural resources, corruption and progressive military dictatorships have led to economic failure. The shortest way out, in Dr. Bagnied' s point of view, is to set out paths toward a strategic economic integration among Arab states. Dr. Bagnied concluded his talk by an optimistic prediction of the ability of youth-led political and economic reform to uplift the Arab economy, foster scientific research, and to capitalize on the region's human and natural resources.
For more details about the panel discussion, please refer to the following newspaper links:
Al Rai:
www.alraimedia.com/Resources/PdfPages/AlRAI/203AAD1F-FE52-4B09-A5C7-50679DFCFE31/P20.pdf
Al Seyassah:
www.al-seyassah.com/Portals/0/pdf/12/Jun/27/06.pdf
Al Anbaa:
www.alanba.com.kw/archivepdf/PDF/2012/06/27-06-2012/07.pdf
Al Watan:
watanpdf.alwatan.com.kw/alwatanPDF/2012-06-27/20.pdf
Released by the Office of Public Affairs on the 3rd July 2012
