In line with its commitment to corporate social responsibility and supporting local community development efforts, Shell Oman Marketing Company signed an agreement with Dar Al Atta Association to sponsor the Big Give Competition that is scheduled to be launched later this month.
The sponsorship agreement was signed at Shell Oman’s head office in Mina Al-Fahal by Adil Ismail Al Raisi, Managing Director of Shell Oman, and Mrs. Maryam Al Zadjali, Chairperson of Dar Al Atta Association, in the presence of senior management representatives of both organizations.
The Big Give competition which is a nationwide initiative by Dar Al Atta, first launched in March 2012, is currently in its fifth round. Teams from different universities and colleges in the Sultanate will compete against each other to come up with big ideas that can help raise funds and awareness that serve the various programmes run by Dar Al Atta.
Speaking about the agreement, Mohammed Ali Al Farsi, General Manager of External Affairs & Business Development, said, “Our partnership with Dar Al Atta in the Big Give Competition is an excellent opportunity for us to take our social investment programme to a nationwide platform and highlight our commitment to society through long-term partnership with active charity organizations.
It also provides a proper channel of communication for young members of the society to drive their enthusiasm towards social work and philanthropy. In addition, it will help develop important skills of the team members and participants in the area of communication, marketing, fundraising and project management, all while delivering value to the charitable causes and projects of Dar Al Atta in the field of family welfare, educational care, empowerment, disaster relief and others.”
Maryam Al Zadjali, Chairperson – Dar Al Atta’a: “On behalf of DAA board members I would like to thank Shell Oman Marketing for supporting this initiative which will reflect positively on the performance of the students participating in this competition. As it was always a hassle for them to find the financial support to start their projects and was one of the main reasons that caused delay in their performance. It is also worth mentioning that Shell has always a big supporter to many other initiatives that are managed by DAA.”
The Big Give Competition main aims are to raise awareness about the importance of volunteerism, encourage young people to engage in voluntary work and the development of youth skills in teamwork, project planning and implementation. The teams compete on 4 different categories of prizes: Most Funds Raised, Best Publicity Awareness, Best Project Implementation and Best Idea.
The agreement comes as an extension of previous partnerships between Shell Oman and Dar Al Atta Association that aimed to contribute to the charitable causes and projects championed by Dar Al Atta like Treasure Hunt, Sponsor a Student Programme and the sponsorship of the community service centre in Jabel Aswad, among many. Both parties are committed to further strengthen their relationship to help the local communities in which they operate.