Arab and American Business Fellowship Program

The American Arab Chamber of Commerce is proud to partner with The Arab & American Business Fellowship (AABF).

The program is designed to bring high-potential young executives from leading Middle Eastern companies to the United States to learn about American business, society and culture, and sends young American executives to the Middle East for the same purpose.  It’s the only private sector-led exchange program to focus on the business leaders of tomorrow, helping to create relationships that will foster corporate success as well as cross-cultural understanding.  Created by Business for Diplomatic Action and launched in 2007 in partnership with the Young Arab Leaders, the AABF has provided transformative experiences to 28 Arab and American fellows, 15 U.S. and Middle Eastern corporate sponsors, and 37 supporting organizations to date. 

How the 2009 program works:

• U.S. companies sponsor one or more visiting Arab fellows, and can nominate one or more of their employees to be fellows traveling to the Middle East.  Sponsoring companies from the Middle East do the same.
• The Arab and American fellows begin their three-week fellowship together in New York on October 4^th, beginning with a two-day orientation session on cross-cultural understanding and business protocol.  Led by experts from the Thunderbird School of Global Management and the Protocol School of Washington, the orientation seminars are open to executives from the sponsoring companies as well.  A welcome reception and dinner for all fellows, sponsors and partners will be held the evening of October 4^th.
• The Arab fellows spend almost three weeks in three U.S. cities: New York, Washington DC, and one other “heartland” city, depending on the locations of the U.S. sponsors.  They are mentored by executives from the sponsoring U.S. companies, meet with employee groups, and engage in social and cultural activities.  Sponsoring companies host groups of fellows for between one day and one week, depending on schedules.  Partner organizations such as the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy and the National Council for International Visitors help plan the events and activities.
• The American fellows leave New York on October 5^th to spend two-and-a-half weeks in Dubai and one other Middle Eastern country: Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, or Palestine.  They will assigned to one of these countries based on professional and personal preference, as well as input from the national chapters of the Young Arab Leaders.  They are mentored by executives from the sponsoring Arab companies, attend meetings and events organized by the YAL national chapters, and engage in diverse social and cultural activities.
• At the end of the program, all of the fellows—both Arabs and Americans—will meet in Washington on October 22^nd for a closing conference to share their insights and discuss the key lessons from their experiences, with representatives from the sponsoring Arab and American companies, the U.S. business community, the partner organizations, and the media also attending.

If you have any questions about the program or would like further information, please contact Fay Beydoun at (313) 945-1700 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .