Inclusion, Diversity and Equity
Zain’s Inclusion, Diversity & Equity (IDE) division is a strategic accelerator of long-term performance and talent sustainability. In 2024, Zain launched its ‘4WARD – Progress with Purpose’ corporate strategy, positioning Purpose & Action as a core driver of responsible growth through Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) and IDE initiatives.
Targeted IDE initiatives, including WE for women advancement, WE ABLE for disability inclusion, BE WELL for employee wellbeing, Zain Youth (ZY), and the IDE University (IDEU), were continued and played a key role in driving digital transformation and supporting sustainable, long-term value creation.
Zain intricately measures the impact of its IDE-related initiatives through Group-wide inclusion assessment in partnership with Glint, benchmarking performance against 1,000 global organizations and focusing on Allyship, Addressing Bias, and Courage to Engage.
WE (Women Advancement Program)
In 2025, Zain launched two flagship initiatives: NOVA for entry-level women in departments at Zain with low female representation, and WE SUCCEED, for middle to senior management. As of Q4 2025, women represented 29% of Zain’s total workforce, progressing towards the headcount target of 40%, while female representation stood at 23% in middle management positions, and 16% in leadership, indicating clear progress toward the 30% WE 2030 target for both levels.
NOVA targets key development areas supplemented with bi-weekly training and engagement sessions led by each Zain operating company’s WE Champion, combining learning within groups to enhance career growth possibilities. The program engaged 148 participants, supported by structured learning and tracked progress. A dedicated two-day leadership retreat set the foundation for the cultivation of a new community, followed by the delivery of Mindset Transformation sessions, achieving 94% overall satisfaction and 93% knowledge acquisition and application, reflecting strong learning impact.
WE SUCCEED focuses on strengthening succession pipelines and accelerating leadership readiness, with Year 1 delivered in partnership with TRACE, a regional expert behavior transformation consultancy entity. WE SUCCEED engaged 50 participants selected by their respective CEOs to undergo a three-year journey built on tailored individual development profiles to guide growth, readiness, and progression.
WE ABLE (Disability Inclusion Initiative)
In 2025, Zain Group launched its WE ABLE 2030 Vision, reinforcing a commitment to disability inclusion in an AI-driven world through five strategic pillars spanning disability-inclusive AI governance, inclusive employment and retention, accessible products and services, leadership development for people with disabilities, and global recognition and advocacy. Key initiatives included Zain’s first-ever Disability Inclusion Roundtable in partnership with PurpleSpace, the world’s only cross-sector networking and professional development hub for disabled employees, Employee Resource Group leaders and allies, empowering employees with disabilities to confidently advocate for their needs, attended by 45 participants with a 93.5% satisfaction rate. 12 disability etiquette sessions were also delivered across Zain operating companies. These efforts are complemented by strong progress in physical accessibility, achieving near-full accessibility in Kuwait and Jordan (96–99%) and a Group-wide average of 81%, demonstrating sustained momentum toward inclusive infrastructure and equitable growth.
Building on the WE ABLE strategy launched in 2019, Zain scaled its partnership with Be My Eyes, an renowned app connecting blind or low vision users who want assistance with volunteers and companies across the world, through live video and AI. By enabling real-time employee volunteering across all eight markets, 1,873 calls were answered in 2025 with a 98.9% satisfaction rate. In addition, Zain became the first telco in the region to join the Business Disability Forum, engaging with over 600 global organizations on disability inclusion strategies, and enhancing the company’s procurement accessibility practices.
BE WELL (Employee Wellness Initiative)
BE WELL strengthened Zain’s employee wellbeing agenda by prioritizing mental health, physical wellbeing, and resilience utilizing a data driven and sustainable approach. In collaboration with the Kuwait Counseling Center (KCC), 850 therapy sessions were delivered in 2025. Zain’s collaboration with Tuhoon, an innovative workplace wellness solution, saw an increase in engagement through webinars on topics such as stress management and happiness, with 500+ attendees in 2025. Physical wellbeing initiatives also saw strong engagement, with 915 participants joining the Ramadan Steps Challenge. Additionally, 24 employees are certified under the Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) program, reinforcing a psychologically safe and resilient workplace.
A key milestone achieved in 2025 was Zain’s Group-wide shift from isolated initiatives to a proactive, insight-led wellbeing strategy. In partnership with Omantel, the Mental Health at Work One Mind Index was piloted in 2024 and conducted in all operations in 2025, establishing a foundation for tailored wellbeing approaches. These findings directly shaped the evolution of BE WELL 2030, including the launch of the Youth Well-Being initiative, commencing with a survey completed by 791 youth respondents, and six corresponding youth focus groups Group-wide.
ZY (Zain Youth Initiative)
Zain Youth (ZY) empowers employees under the age of 30 through structured programs focused on leadership, capability building, and early-career acceleration, strengthening Zain’s long-term talent pipeline across operations. The ZY Counsel, a gathering of high-potential young talents, serves as an advisory team to address key operational and CEO-prioritized challenges. The group engaged through leadership masterclasses. At the same time, their ideas are under implementation across operations, including a gaming strategy in Zain Kuwait, customer experience enhancements in Zain Bahrain, challenge identification and mitigation in Zain Jordan, and initiatives to increase activations in Zain Cash Jordan. ZY Mavericks, meanwhile, builds internal youth trainers through certifications and peer-led learning via ZY Learn, delivering five sessions to 50+ attendees and supported by a Train the Trainer workshop in Jordan. A milestone was achieved with 30 Zain Youth Mavericks certified as professional trainers, strengthening internal capability-building across the Group. In parallel, NEXT Z serves as Zain’s structured early-career leadership and technical development program, while the Gen Z program for fresh graduates rolls out across opcos as it enters its second decade.
IDEU (Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity University)
IDEU (Inclusion, Diversity & Equity University) remains a cornerstone of Zain’s workforce development and digital transformation agenda through its strategic partnership with Spain’s IE University. With 2,000 employees onboarded, Zain equips participants with cutting-edge digital transformation capabilities and a structured pathway toward a Private Master’s Degree in Digital Transformation.
In 2025, IDEU welcomed 259 new students, maintaining a 95%+ average course pass rate with zero inactive learners, reinforcing the program’s effectiveness and sustainability. The Stellars program scaled peer-to-peer learning by enabling high performing graduates to mentor and support new participants across operations. IDEU’s impact has received international and regional recognition, including the EFMD Excellence Award 2025 (Silver), recognition as Best People Development Program at the MERIT Summit Awards, and being shortlisted for the 2025 Reuters Global Sustainability Awards, positioning IDEU as a leading model for data-driven, future-ready talent development.
