A total of eight staff members including the Ufone team, officials of the Group and members from various OpCos will be selected to participate in a once in a lifetime, 2,100km, four-country European expedition cycling from Brussels to Barcelona.
Two participants from Ufone have been shortlisted to be sent to Abu Dhabi for further fitness tests – if chosen, one of them becomes part of the team of 8 to compete in Brussels.
The tour will take place between September 5-18, 2013 and each participant will ride for three days from Brussels through Belgium, Luxemburg, Germany, France, Northern Spain on to Barcelona.
Syed Zulfiqar Ali Zaidi, GM Human Resources Ufone said that “employee engagement through social activities has always been of a matter of pride for Ufone. Etisalat's participation in the GSMA mHealth awareness cycling tour 2013 provided our employees with yet another exciting chance of becoming part of a worthwhile cause and at the same time feel part of a bigger Etisalat Global Community.”
Ufone believes employees are at the heart of its entire operations. Therefore, we believe in our employees taking part in CSR / social activities etc. More than 60 employees applied for this health initiative, which was well beyond expectations of the management. This is a reflection of the existing passion of our Ufone staffers to participate in CSR activities for health awareness and society building program, he added
Pakistan ranks amongst countries with the highest prevalence of diabetes, with Sudan and several Sub-Saharan African countries also suffering from this disease.
Shahnawaz Khan, a participant and Ufone staff member said, “I feel immensely privileged to be shortlisted for GSMA mHealth Grand Tour. It’s a great honor to represent Ufone and I will strive to do my best to get selected. I believe it’s an excellent initiative and Etisalat as well as other participating mobile operators deserve appreciation. I am really excited and looking forward to this journey to become part of the fight against the menace of diabetes.”
Raza Aijaz Akram, another participant and Ufone official said: “Opportunities like these are rare... I've been an adventurous person throughout my life and love taking challenges, as they say the only way to do great work is to love what you do. Ufone has proved once again that it is focused towards employee engagement and development even at an international level event. Being a part of this cause means a lot to me. It is a matter of great pride for me to represent Ufone and my country; I would endeavor to give my very best InshAllah.”