New Amman centre gives Jordanian youth direct access to regional programmes, expertise and opportunities in leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, technology and future skills
- Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed: “We are building a sustainable Arab ecosystem that transforms young people’s potential and ideas into a development resource that contributes to the region’s future.”
- Rashid bin Humaid: “The strength of this model will be measured by its ability to make young people partners in shaping it and driving its impact.”
- Sultan Al Neyadi to Jordanian youth: “Do not measure your future by what is available to you today. Part of your role is to create what does not yet exist.”
- Adey Salamin: “We are proud that Jordan has been chosen as the first destination for the Arab Youth Center’s regional expansion, and we value the confidence this choice represents.”
Amman, Jordan, August 19, 2026:In a landmark step advancing joint Arab youth action, the Arab Youth Center (AYC), in partnership with the Crown Prince Foundation in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, has announced the opening of the Arab Youth Center in Jordan, the first permanent institutional application of its model outside the UAE. The new Center will connect young people in Jordan with the skills, expertise, partnerships and opportunities needed to shape their futures and contribute to the region’s development.
The opening marks a major expansion of the Arab Youth Center’s regional model. For the first time, the experience it has developed through programmes and partnerships across the Arab world will operate through a permanent institutional presence outside the UAE, combining national leadership in Jordan with access to a wider Arab network of experts, institutions and opportunities.
For young people in Jordan, the centre creates a dedicated pathway to develop their capabilities, build projects and entrepreneurial ventures, and connect with opportunities across the region. Its programmes will focus on leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, technology, youth research, sustainability and future skills.
The centre will combine training and mentorship with applied laboratories, business incubation and collaborative spaces where young people can experiment, develop ideas and turn them into viable initiatives and enterprises.
It will be led and managed locally by the Crown Prince Foundation through a long-term strategic partnership with the Arab Youth Center, which will contribute the programmes, methodologies, expertise and regional networks developed through its work from Abu Dhabi.
A new phase in joint Arab youth action
His Highness Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Court for Development and Fallen Heroes’ Affairs and Chairman of the Arab Youth Center, said: “The opening of the Arab Youth Center in Jordan marks the beginning of a new phase in joint Arab youth action. Our vision is founded on the belief that empowering young people is a shared Arab responsibility, one that requires sustainable institutions capable of transforming ambition into capability, ideas into viable projects, and talent into a development resource.”
His Highness added: “Guided by this vision, we are building an interconnected ecosystem that gives young people access to the knowledge, tools and networks needed to broaden their opportunities and strengthen their role in shaping the future of their countries.”
His Highness noted that Jordan’s selection as the first destination for the Center’s expansion outside the UAE reflects the longstanding ties between the UAE and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, as well as the importance both countries place on young people within their development priorities.
Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of Ajman Municipality and Planning Department and Vice Chairman of the Arab Youth Center, said: “The strength of this model will be measured by its ability to build an ecosystem in which young people are partners in identifying needs, designing and implementing initiatives, and assessing their impact. The Arab Youth Center in Jordan places young people at the heart of decision-making, ensuring its programmes remain closely aligned with their priorities and responsive to the changes affecting their education, skills and professional futures.”
He added: “The Arab Youth Center brings its experience in programme design, capacity-building and partnership development, while empowering national institutions to lead the model in line with the needs of their communities. Collaboration with government entities, the private sector, universities and civil society organisations will help translate these programmes into tangible outcomes, from developing skills and incubating initiatives to supporting entrepreneurial ventures and expanding pathways to employment and community participation.”
Preparing young people for changing economies
His Excellency Dr Sultan bin Saif Al Neyadi, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Vice Chairman of the Arab Youth Center, attended the opening and delivered a keynote address highlighting the need to prepare young people for rapidly changing economies, industries and career paths.
“We are working today with a generation experiencing an unprecedented transformation in the nature of economies, work and opportunity. Jobs are changing, new sectors are emerging, and technology is redefining what people can achieve. We cannot prepare young people for a new future using the same tools that prepared previous generations,” His Excellency said.
“Our role is no longer to direct young people towards a single pathway or present them with one definition of success. It is to expand the choices available to them and equip them with the ability to shape their own paths.”
Highlighting entrepreneurship as a capability extending beyond starting a business, His Excellency added: “Entrepreneurship, in its broadest sense, is the ability to recognise an opportunity, understand a problem and transform an idea into genuine economic value. Today, no sector is beyond the reach of innovation, and no economy can advance while its young people remain on the margins of this transformation.”
Addressing young people in Jordan and across the Arab world, he said: “Do not measure your future by what is available to you today. Part of your role is to create what does not yet exist. This Center was established to provide you with the space, tools and partnerships needed to create those opportunities and turn your ideas into meaningful impact.”
A centre shaped by its young people
The Arab Youth Center in Jordan has been designed to make young people active partners in its development, rather than simply recipients of its programmes. Participants will help identify priorities, develop initiatives and evaluate their impact.
The centre will also connect young people with institutions, experts and opportunities while building specialised communities around shared interests and emerging fields.
Adey Salamin, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Crown Prince Foundation, said: “The opening of the Arab Youth Center in Jordan reflects the deep and historic ties that have united the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the United Arab Emirates for decades.”
He added: “We are proud that Jordan has been chosen as the first destination for the Arab Youth Center’s regional expansion, and we value the confidence this choice represents.”
Salamin noted that the Center is the result of a longstanding partnership between the Crown Prince Foundation and AYC, grounded in a shared belief that coordinated efforts create greater opportunities for young people and that investing in youth is an investment in the future.
He added that the opening coincides with the Crown Prince Foundation’s tenth anniversary, marking a decade of advancing the vision of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah II through programmes and initiatives that have delivered tangible impact for young people.
“Our ambition is for the Center to be more than a physical headquarters. We want it to be a genuine youth-led space where young people help design its programmes, develop its initiatives, and build networks and opportunities extending from Jordan across the Arab world,” Salamin concluded.
Years of cooperation becomes a permanent platform
The new centre builds on cooperation between the Arab Youth Center and the Crown Prince Foundation dating back to 2017, when the two organisations began working together on initiatives in innovation, leadership and technology.
The partnership progressed with the signing of a memorandum of understanding in October 2019 to establish an integrated youth centre in Amman. The opening transforms that cooperation into a permanent platform with the capacity to serve successive generations of young people.
The Crown Prince Foundation will lead and manage the centre in line with national priorities, working with government entities, businesses, universities and community organisations. The Arab Youth Center will support its work through its programmes, expertise and regional networks.
The centre will also connect young people in Jordan with educational, professional, entrepreneurial and volunteering opportunities available through the Arab Youth Center’s wider regional network.
Built for learning, experimentation and enterprise
Located within King Abdullah II Gardens in the Al Muqabalain area of eastern Amman, the centre occupies a 4,340-square-metre site, with a total built-up area of 3,268 square metres.
Its facilities include innovation and digital fabrication laboratories, business incubators, interactive and creative spaces, and areas for learning and collaborative work. The building incorporates sustainable local materials and has been designed to support experimentation, project development and innovation.
The opening ceremony brought together officials and youth-sector leaders from the UAE and Jordan, alongside representatives of government, business, academia and civil society, young people, entrepreneurs and initiative founders.
The programme traced the partnership’s development since 2017 and presented the centre’s operating plans and forthcoming programmes.
Dr Sultan Al Neyadi also toured the centre’s laboratories, facilities and creative spaces and met its team, young people, initiative founders and partners. He later joined a youth circle organised by the Federal Youth Authority exploring how dedicated youth spaces can help young people develop their capabilities and turn ideas into actionable initiatives.
