ITOCHU Announces Its Acceptance of Qatari Trainees

October 20, 2016

ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that it had accepted trainees from Qatar, a Middle Eastern country, as part of its development of human resources for the future and social contributions.

This training program is implemented as part of Qatar’s development of future-generation human resources that will engage in national development through the Qatar Leadership Centre (QLC),* which provides education for human resources in management, ranging from top management to mid-level and young businesspersons of major Qatari companies. Every year the Centre selects eligible participants from among 700 to 800 people who want to be sent overseas and carries out group training sessions almost one week each month within the country. In addition, the Centre also provides program participants with the opportunity to study actual past cases through lessons and tours of companies in developed foreign countries once a year.

The Qatari trainees that ITOCHU decided to accept for its recent five-day training program from October 16 (Sunday) to 20 (Thursday) consist of 35 people who work in state-owned or semi-state owned companies and government organizations.

For its acceptance of the Qatari trainees, ITOCHU made arrangements for visits to major Japanese manufacturers and retailers. In addition, ITOCHU drew up a training program on learning about Japanese business for the utilization of the know-how for Qatar’s future development by explaining the functions of sogo shosha that are unique to Japan and introducing the company’s history, the background of its growth and current businesses.

ITOCHU has traded crude oil, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and petroleum products with Qatar for many years. ITOCHU has also participated in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant business at the country’s Ras Laffan Industrial City (RLIC) since 1996. Through these activities, ITOCHU has established friendly business relationships with Qatar over many years. In addition, ITOCHU has made donations to educational programs supervised by the Qatar Foundation since 2012 as part of its CSR activities of growth of next generations, community contribution and promoting art and culture within and outside Japan. ITOCHU aims to develop and deepen friendlier relationships with Qatar, which seeks a broad range of industrial development by developing future generation human resources who will manage the important businesses.

ITOCHU sincerely hopes that this training program will lead to the further development of Qatar.

  • *QLC is chaired by HE Sheikha Al-Mayassa Al-Thani, the sister of the current Emir of the State of Qatar, and the members of its Board of Directors include the Minister of State for Defense Affairs, the Minister of Culture and Sports, the Minister of Administrative Development Labor & Social Affairs, the former President of Hamad Bin Khalifa University, and the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy and Commerce. QLC is an organization that provides education for human resources for management, ranging from top management to mid-level and young businesspersons of major Qatari companies