MEPRA opens region’s first dedicated public relations training college

The Middle East’s burgeoning public relations (PR) industry adds on a new growth engine with the opening of the first dedicated PR training college in Dubai by the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA), today.

MEPRA joins hands with the UK-based International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO), an international umbrella-organisation of public relations consultancies, to launch the MEPRA-ICCO College to offer on-line and class-room courses for managerial, supervisory, entry level public relations professionals and aspirants.

MEPRA Chairman Sadri Barrage, Executive Committee Member, Sunil John and ICCO Secretary General Simon Quarendon signed the agreement to build and operate a dedicated training college facility for MEPRA in Dubai.

“Public relations is increasingly being recognised in the Middle East as a critical part of marketing and corporate communications strategies,” said Barrage. “The MEPRA-ICCO College is a first-of-its-kind initiative providing MEPRA members with easy access to world class training resources, helping them to further raise the level of PR practice across the region.”

A MEPRA-ICCO College Advisory Board has been constituted with Sunil John and MEPRA Treasurer Dave Robinson amongst its first members. The board reviews course content and serves as the pubic advocate of the College.

Nick Barnett, the UK-based principal of ICCO College, will head the MEPRA-ICCO College. His extensive teaching credits include the University of Westminster, Webster’s University, European Business School, Regents Business School and Greenwich School of Management. He is an educational advisor to the Association of Media Evaluation Companies.

“The MEPRA-ICCO College will be an attractive value add to member agencies of MEPRA and their clients. We also aim to reach to the student community to offer these programmes for aspirants,” said John.

“As the vital link between policy makers and the media, PR professionals can execute their role efficiently only when they are in tune with region-specific requirements. With MEPRA opening new chapters across the Gulf and the Middle East region, the MEPRA-ICCO College will meet this goal and launch home-bred talent region-wide in the PR sector as well as further hone the skills of practising professionals.”

Principally aimed at improving the standards of professionalism among PR practitioners across the Middle East region, the MEPRA-ICCO College will offer a modular approach of learning. Specialist tutors formulate and implement the course content. Successful students on completion of all three modules will be presented a MEPRA-ICCO College Achievement Certificate or a MEPRA-ICCO College Merit Certificate based on individual scores. They can also gain a 12-month student membership to the International Public Relations Association (IPRA) providing them with privileged access to the IPRA website which has over 1,200 case studies.

“The ICCO College courses are internationally benchmarked as the pioneering industry-led training modules for the public relations sector,” said Quarendon. “The courses cover the gamut of the industry – from account management to writing skills and strategic PR. With the MEPRA-ICCO College, we are further streamlining the course content to suit ground realities and enable PR professionals in the region to add value to their services.”

“The MEPRA-ICCO training methodology introduces a flexible learning environment for students, who can acquire news skills even as they work,” said John. “The economically priced training and easy access to world-class PR practices are in the best interests of the individual, the employer and the PR industry as a whole.”

The MEPRA-ICCO College will launch with online courses to be offered through January and February 2007, followed by classroom courses that will begin in March 2007. The online courses are particularly suited for PR industry aspirants and junior-level staff. Registrations can be made online at www.mepra.org. Students studying a course will have access to on-line tutors, who are PR industry experts.

Classroom based courses - specifically tailored to meet the requirements of supervisory staff and senior management staff - will be run twice-yearly, thrice-yearly or quarterly depending on demand. Students are assured of personalized tutoring and on-line study materials with the teaching methodology focused on delivering practical skills.

“ICCO College is recognized by 29 trade associations around the world and endorsed by other professional bodies such as IPRA,” added Quarendon. “This global acceptance of our training programmes will be applicable for students of the MEPRA-ICCO College too. We ‘walk the course’ with students, and the self-study courses will show how PR works in a practical setting and how important it is for modern businesses.”

MEPRA-ICCO College will offer a roster of courses developed specifically for the region covering areas such as launch campaigns, the first steps in managing the PR business, and managing corporate communications and PR. For more details, log on to: www.mepra.org.

Tags: International Public Relations Association, IPRA, MEPRA, MEPRA-ICCO, Sadri Barrage, Simon Quarendon, Sunil John

FINE recognized as 8th most powerful Arab brand name according to Forbes

FINE Hygienic Paper Co. LTD, Jordan’s leading provider of hygiene and toiletry products, was recognized as one of the top ranking Arab brands for the year 2006. This recognition was granted to FINE by “Forbes,’ an internationally renowned business magazine that highlights the latest developments seen in markets around the world.

The award was presented to FINE in recognition of the brand’s ability to affect consumer behavior and markets across the region. The list included other regional brand names all recognized for their impact on the markets they operate within. According to the Forbes list, FINE was ranked 8th out of the other top winning 40 regional brands including Qatar Airways, Emirates, Al Mara’i Al Arabiya, and Al Jazeera news agency.

FINE was short listed by Forbes’s judging committee amongst other competing brands on account of its high quality range of luxury tissue paper, the high standards of quality its products enjoy, its ability to compete on a regional scale, the wide distribution of its products, and last but not least its high level of competitiveness amongst other international brands of similar products.

Commenting on the notable achievement, FINE’s Vice Chairman Mr. Ghassan Nuqul said, “It gives us great pride to win this prestigious international award. This achievement only serves to highlight the competitive edge that FINE and its product line-up hold in terms of quality and innovation. We lead in excellence and this award is a testament to that. We stand out from the rest, despite the fierce competition we face in the regional market. We believe that this is due to FINE’s commitment to being everyone’s companion for life. We are confident that we will continue to stand out in the market as long as we are committed to implement the highest standards of quality and innovation in our methods of production, and we are always close to our consumer; showing that Fine is the caring product that they can trust throughout the years.”

It is important to note that FINE achieved several other prestigious awards over the past few years, for it was recognized as winner of the SUPERBRANDS award for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006. FINE was also recognized as the provider of ‘Best Toiletry Products’ across the region according to Retail News Middle East magazine. It was also granted the Environmental Health & Safety Award for the year 2006 by Jabal Ali Free Zone Authority (JAFZA). This award was granted to the firm for its contribution to the environmental wellbeing within JAFZA.

Mr. Nuqul added that FINE continuously strives to meet its customers’ demands and to further exceed them by employing international standards of quality. ‘We strive to always have a strong market presence in both local and regional markets and we hope to achieve this goal only through ensuring that our products come with the highest standards of comfort for communities across the region. We have recently expanded our operations to include the markets of Sudan and Morocco; where we will employ the same standards of excellence as we employ in all the other arenas we operate within. This isn’t the first award we achieve at FINE and we hope that it won’t be our last, for such achievements serve as our source of inspiration.’ he said.

Tags: FINE, FINE Hygienic Paper Co. LTD, Ghassan Nuqul