Kuwait, 22 November 2017: Alghanim Industries, one of the largest privately owned companies in the region, announced the participation of 224 employees at the Gulf Bank 642 Marathon, which was held over the past weekend. The company covered registration fees for all employees that participated in the event. This year, the Gulf Bank 642 Marathon saw a total of 6,000 attendees representing over 130 nationalities.

 

Every year, Alghanim Industries actively encourages its employees to participate in such sports events, especially ones that support charitable initiatives and causes. For this year’s 642 Marathon, Gulf Bank partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) with the aim of raising awareness about the plight of Syrian refugees through a campaign, under the slogan "Voices for Refugees".

Commenting on the company’s participation in the event, Chief Human Resources Officer at Alghanim Industries, Mr. Henning Schlutt, said: "Every year Alghanim Industries partners with different organizations that hold sporting events aimed at supporting charitable causes. Our company promotes a Healthy lifestyle philosophy and we encourage our employees to participate in these events. We are honored to contribute to raising awareness about Syrian refugees and look forward to participating in similar events and in the future."

Ervin Galin, Assistant Branch Manager of Wendy’s at Alghanim Industries who ran the 42km full marathon said: "This was my first 42km marathon, I really enjoyed running alongside my fellow colleagues from different functions in the company and most of all, running for a noble cause. The weather and energy is always great and I look forward to participating in the marathon next year".

The event kicked off on Saturday morning from Souq Sharq, and included four different categories, at different difficulty levels, for those looking to run or walk. The categories were: a 5km "beginners and family fun run", a 10km "amateur run", an advanced 21km half marathon, and the 42km full marathon.

Alghanim Industries holds employee engagement activities on a regular basis, including blood drives which the company organizes in collaboration with the Kuwait Central Blood Bank (KCBB), Breast Cancer Awareness campaigns, and charity runs and marathons in which the company funds the registration fees for employees interested in joining, in addition to celebrating the national holidays in the company. Earlier this year, Alghanim Industries signed an MoU with the UNHCR which will impact the education of thousands of Syrian refugees in Lebanon.