In an initiative to foster cultural exchange between Muslim youth and the various youth groups in the world, and to enhance the spirit of leadership among Bahraini youth, Kuwait Finance House - Bahrain (KFH-Bahrain) announced its partnership with Mosaic to establish its first international operations in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The foundation of this partnership builds upon the success of the annual Sophia Antipolis Mentorship Program. The announcement came during a signing of a historic agreement between the two parties last week. The agreement was signed by Mr. Abdulhakeem Alkhayyat, MD and CEO of KFH-Bahrain and Mr. John O'Brien, Managing Director of Mosaic, in the presence of HH Sheikha Hessa Bint Khalifa Al Khalifa, CEO of Injaz Bahrain, and the British Ambassador to Bahrain, H.E. Mr. Jamie Bowden. According to the agreement, a youth mentoring initiative and network will be established collaboratively in 2010. Mosaic is a charitable organisation founded by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, to address Muslim community-based interests and issues. The organization aims to increase a general understanding of global social and environmental issues and strengthen positive relations between individuals from both the Muslim and non Muslim world. Mosaic initiatives are designed to support young people in their education and aspirations, as well as mobilizing more young professionals to undertake volunteering and mentoring activities through education and youth development. "This is a significant development on the international issues of collaboration and understanding", said Mr. John O'Brien. His Royal Highness will be delighted to hear that the aim of Mosaic in encouraging young people to take a leadership role in the world has been embraced here in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Together in partnership we can now look further to establishing joint projects based around engaging Bahraini young people in new and exciting ways." Mr. Abdulhakeem Alkhayyat commented "It is the objective of KFH-Bahrain to play an integral part in the development of local talent and especially future leaders. This initiative supports these objectives and we are pleased to be part of it. With the correct guidance of our young leaders now, we can have a positive impact on the outcome of their decisions in the future, and our partnership with Mosaic will help meet this objective. I also cannot overlook the role of Injaz Bahrain and in particular HH Sheikha Hessa Bint Khalifa Al Khalifa, on their active role in ensuring the success of Sophia Antipolis and will, God willing, have a key role in the success of this new partnership." Mr. Philippe Mariani, CEO of Genesis Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of KFH Bahrain and coordinator of the initiative said "It is anticipated that this partnership will pursue the achievements of the annual Sophia Antipolis Mentorship Program in developing strong relationships and team spirit between the two initiatives, thus further stimulating valuable ideas and building a valuable network for the future. We hope that such an initiative will function in harmony with Bahrain's vision 2030 and as a catalyst to create a favorable environment for talent and leadership development. We are delighted to convene Mosaic in Bahrain and looking forward to working together with Mosaic UK and others as they emerge to foster further international activities and understanding". Mosaic's initial task will be to develop the leadership structure for its plans and encourage support from others for its objectives. By bringing alumni of both the Sophia Antipolis Mentorship Program and Mosaic International Summer School, it will form a new powerful network of individuals who can channel their energies towards benefiting society generally and Bahrain's young people more specifically through new ideas, projects and social engagement.