One hundred Bloomberg Terminals have been installed at five leading universities in Abu Dhabi as a result of the Memorandum of Understanding signed in October 2019 between the Ministry of Education, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, ADNOC, and Bloomberg L.P. to implement a training and development programme called the ADNOC-Bloomberg Education Initiative.
The initiative is designed to equip a new generation of students with the specialised financial skills needed to excel in a dynamic and globally connected world, said an ADNOC press release issued on Wednesday.
The terminals have been installed at UAE University, UAEU; Abu Dhabi University, ADU; New York University – Abu Dhabi, NYU-AD; Khalifa University, and the Higher Colleges of Technology ,HCT, Abu Dhabi Campus, where students have also begun their Bloomberg Market Concepts, BMC, certifications, an e-learning curriculum that provides an introduction to global financial markets.
“Facilitating and advancing quality research and education that enriches the next generation’s skills is a key focus of the National Higher Education Strategy. That is why the Ministry of Education was pleased to partner with ADNOC and Bloomberg to provide university students with access to the Bloomberg Terminal and Bloomberg Market Concepts certification,” said Dr. Samer Al Samahi, Assistant Under-Secretary for Planning and Development at the Ministry of Education.
He added that the abilities gained through the ADNOC-Bloomberg Initiative will empower and support the UAE’s students and researchers and enable them to be better able to adapt to the changing dynamics of the finance world.
In turn, Omar Suwaina Al Suwaidi, Director, Executive Office Directorate at ADNOC, said, “We are pleased to have enabled students and faculty at participating universities to continue accessing valuable real-time financial market tools during this unprecedented period, through the ADNOC-Bloomberg Education Initiative.
“ADNOC’s support for this initiative is part of our corporate social responsibility programmes and underpins our commitment to investing in the development of the next generation of skilled workers and supporting the UAE’s plans to build a knowledge-based, globally competitive workforce and society.”
The initiative, he said, will also help create a world-class talent pool for ADNOC’s new trading entities, “supporting our strategy to build out our trading activities and capabilities in order to deliver greater value from our products.”
Distance learning has become the new method of schooling in the UAE due to the current pandemic. The ADNOC-Bloomberg Education Initiative has enabled temporary remote access to the Bloomberg Terminal for professors to support these efforts and ensure the BMC certification programme runs without disruption. Also, around 4,000 students are able to remotely access the terminals.
Approximately 300 students have completed the certification so far, and there are up to 5,000 certifications available for a total of 10 universities. The initiative is also conducting regular webinars and one-to-one trainings for faculty on the Bloomberg Terminal to support them as they continue with distance learning.
These sessions, delivered by Bloomberg experts and analysts, cover a range of topics including how to use news analytics to gain market insights, commodity markets, and the impact of Covid-19 on financial markets.
Benjamin Grolimund, Regional Manager, Middle East and Africa – Financial Products at Bloomberg L.P., said, “Given the exceptional circumstances brought on by the global pandemic, we have collaborated with ADNOC and the Ministry of Education to ensure students at participating universities continue to access the same resources and data used by leading business and finance professionals across the globe. We hope this will support them as they prepare to make the transition to the professional world, and in playing an active role in the UAE’s economy.”
The ADNOC Bloomberg Education Initiative – presided over by the Ministry of Education – aims to install up to 200 Bloomberg Terminals at 10 UAE universities. Students at participating universities will also have access to the first Bloomberg Trading Challenge to be held in the UAE. The challenge – designed by Bloomberg – aims to help students develop their skills in financial data analytics and view the market through the eyes of those who use the Bloomberg Terminal every day, such as portfolio managers, investment analysts and traders.
