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Middle East

UAE tycoon launches largest Arab education fund with $1.14B

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    Chairman of the Arab Youth Fund Abdul Aziz al-Ghurair speaks to The Associated Press Wednesday, April 20, 2016 in Dubai. The multibillionaire businessman from the United Arab Emirates has launched the Arab world's largest education fund, setting aside $1.14 billion (4.2 billion dirhams) in grants for underserved youth from the region. He says his family has allocated a third of their wealth for the endowment. (AP Photo/Malak Harb) (The Associated Press)

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    CEO of the Arab Youth Fund Maysa Jalbout, center, shakes hands with representatives of four top universities in the Middle East after signing agreements in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Wednesday, April 20, 2016. A multibillionaire businessman from the United Arab Emirates has launched the Arab world's largest education fund, setting aside $1.14 billion (4.2 billion dirhams) in grants for underserved youth from the region. (AP Photo/Aya Batrawy) (The Associated Press)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – A multibillionaire businessman from the United Arab Emirates has launched the Arab world's largest education fund, setting aside $1.14 billion (4.2 billion dirhams) in grants for underserved youth from the region.

The Abdulla al-Ghurair Foundation for Education plans to provide scholarships for 15,000 Middle Eastern students over the next 10 years. The recipients will be students in need of financial assistance who also qualify for entrance to the region's top universities.

Fund Chairman Abdul Aziz al-Ghurair said at Wednesday's launch that his family has set aside a third of their wealth for the education initiative.

More than half of the 369 million people living in the Middle East are under 25 years old, but unemployment runs high in part because many do not have access to quality education or jobs.