In cooperation with the Riyadh Educational Directorate (RED), Panda Retail Company equipped the classes of autism students at kindergarten schools in Riyadh with the latest equipment to enable them to implement the autism programs. This initiative came as part of the agreement signed recently between the Riyadh Educational Directorate (RED) and Panda Retail Company to qualify 450 disabled students to the local job market. The official opening of the new classes witnessed the attendance of Assistant Director for School Affairs Hamed Al-Shunaiber and Talal Al Lwaihiq, head of marketing relation at Panda Retail Company. Al-Shunaiber commended the outstanding role played by Panda Retail Company for supporting the Riyadh Educational Directorate's programs. It is noteworthy that Panda retail Company has launched recently a training program designed to support students with intellectual disabilities of Riyadh Educational Directorate to work within the various branches of Panda. As a result of this special training program Panda signed employment contracts with 57 disabled students, who are currently working at Panda's branches in Riyadh. Commenting on investing in Saudi youth, Muwaffaq Jamal, Chief Executive Officer at Panda Retail Co, said that the development of human resources and investment in the human element comes at the forefront of the priorities of the company. "We give priority to employee training and offer a range of training programs to improve the skill levels of our staff in a variety of ways," he said. He continued, "Through the company's social responsibility programs our focus always on the development of this category to develop their skills and invest their energies and prepare them for work areas in our branches." Panda Retail Company has established its position as a leading company in the retail sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In 2001, the company began its CSR efforts with a few social projects. Panda Retail Company has also contributed in the training and employment of more than 10,000 Saudi men under the agreement between the Savola Group and the General Organization for Technical and Vocational Training to found the Saudi Institute for Retail Sales and Marketing.
