Students celebrated the occasion with ministers, Qatar Airways officials and other dignitaries at the Al Darb ceremony.
Qatar Airways celebrated the achievements of more than 120 Qataris in its Al Darb Qatarisation programme at a ceremony on Sunday.
Dignitaries, students and families enjoyed a night of festivities as their achievements were recognised.
The Al Darb Qatarisation programme also took the opportunity to introduce its newly re-launched branding, which features a unique logo.
Al Darb, which means the pathway, highlights the range of career options within QA besides representing Qatari nationals set on a path to become global residents and ambassadors for Qatar.
The Al Darb event was hosted by Qatar Airways Group CEO Akbar al-Baker, who was joined by HE the Minister of Finance and chairman of Qatar Airways Ali Shareef al-Emadi, HE the Minister of Labour Abdullah Saleh Mubarak al-Khulaifi, HE the Minister of Administrative Development Issa Saad al-Jafali al-Nuaimi, Ezdan Holding Group chairman Sheikh Dr Khalid bin Thani bin Abdullah al-Thani, Qatar’s ambassador to US Mohamed Jaham al-Kuwari and US ambassador to Qatar Dana Shell Smith. Qatar Airways vice-president (National Talent Management) Dr Kholode al-Obaidli was also present on the occasion.
“Our efforts to invest in young Qataris are in line with Qatar National Vision 2030. We have worked very hard at developing Al Darb to ensure that we are offering a range of opportunities for different levels of Qatari nationals to progress, empower themselves and, most importantly, create a sustainable future for Qatar by investing in their talent and building a strong local workforce,” said al-Baker.
The new recruits, made up of students and direct hires, have entered one of the nine educational and training programmes offered by the airline. These include the National Scholarship programme, Cadet Pilot programme, Aircraft Maintenance Engineering programme, Summer Internship programme, Graduate Development programme, Aviation Management programme, Airport Operations management, Jossor programme and the Massey University MBA programme.
Those acknowledged at the event included 11 cadet pilots and four engineers who graduated from their respective programmes and have now entered the Al Darb Qatarisation programme.
Additionally, 22 pilots and 10 engineers who completed their training with the airlines’s Al Darb Qatarisation programme celebrated their graduation to become first officers and licensed engineers.
Al Darb, which is now in its fourth year, has grown steadily over the years with 450 students currently participating.
