Goal 1

SDG 1: No Poverty

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOAL 1

No Poverty

Ahlia University Institutional Report

Institutional commitment

Ahlia University advances SDG 1 by widening access to higher education, reducing financial barriers, strengthening employability and entrepreneurship, and working with civil-society and industry partners so that education can support social mobility. Its Community Engagement Plan 2021–2025 places access, inclusion, community-based research and empowerment through education within the University’s institutional mission.

Evidence basis: verified public institutional sources and dated activities within 2021–2025. Ongoing policies and services are identified separately from dated initiatives; no single year is treated as the core year.

How Ahlia University applies SDG 1

Affordable access to education: The University’s access model includes scholarships, financial aid and tuition-remission arrangements. In January 2021, Ahlia announced partial scholarships of up to 50% for high-achieving undergraduate students and partial support ranging from 20% to 50% for several eligible groups. The Community Engagement framework also identifies support for students with special needs and disadvantaged backgrounds as part of access and inclusion.
Employability and income capability: Career Counselling supports students throughout their studies with career planning, CV preparation, interview preparation, referrals, networking and access to vacancies. The Professional Relations Directorate connects students with public- and private-sector partners that provide internships, field visits, workshops, guest lectures, recruitment links and support for student research.
Entrepreneurship and local economic participation: The Ahlia Centre for Entrepreneurship provides practical skills, workshops, challenges, competitions and mentoring for students and members of the Bahraini community. Its purpose is to help turn ideas into viable ventures, support new companies and strengthen job and income creation.
Community partnership: Ahlia’s civil-society consultations and community-engagement governance connect the University with charity, professional and social organisations. These relationships extend education and training opportunities to young people and support joint work in education and research.

Institutional integration

The University’s contribution is reinforced through four connected functions: academic provision develops knowledge and professional capability; research generates and exchanges evidence; operations apply the goal within institutional practice; and community engagement transfers knowledge and benefit beyond campus. This structure enables the SDG to be addressed as an institutional responsibility rather than as a stand-alone event.

Five-year evidence record: 2021–2025

The following record presents selected verified evidence across the full reporting period. Each entry identifies the activity or framework and the contribution it makes to the goal.

Period	Verified evidence	Contribution to the SDG
2021	Ahlia announced partial undergraduate scholarships of up to 50%, with partial support of 20%–50% for multiple eligible groups.	Reduced direct financial barriers to participation in higher education.
2021–2025	The Community Engagement Plan formalised access, inclusion, scholarships, entrepreneurship, mentoring and community-based research.	Embedded poverty-reduction pathways within university strategy rather than treating them as isolated activities.
2023	The 11th Consultative Meeting brought together civil, charity, professional and social societies and called for expanded educational and training partnerships for youth.	Connected university resources to community organisations serving diverse social groups.
2023	Ahlia Youth Connect and the Tamkeen session exposed students to real business challenges, labour-market trends, training and enterprise support.	Strengthened employment readiness and enterprise capability.
2024–2025	The University sustained inclusive support through its disability policy, career services and entrepreneurship centre.	Maintained routes into education, work and self-employment for students with different needs and backgrounds.

How the contribution is strengthened

Education: Scholarships and inclusive admissions widen access to skills and qualifications that support long-term economic security.
Research: The Community Engagement Plan prioritises participative research that addresses social and economic development needs.
Operations: Career, counselling and professional-relations services translate study into internships, employment preparation and employer access.
Community: Civil-society dialogue and entrepreneurship support extend the University’s contribution beyond enrolled students.

Institutional outcome

Across 2021–2025, Ahlia University applied SDG 1 through an integrated model of affordable access, inclusive student support, employability preparation, enterprise development and structured community partnership. These mechanisms strengthen the capacity of education to improve livelihoods and social mobility in Bahrain.

Source register

Original Ahlia University institutional pages and event records used for this report. All links are clickable.

1. Ahlia University — Partial Scholarships up to 50% (22 January 2021)

2. Ahlia University — Community Engagement

3. Ahlia University — Knowledge Exchange and Community Engagement Plan 2021–2025

4. Ahlia University — Career Counselling

5. Ahlia University — Ahlia Centre for Entrepreneurship

6. Ahlia University — 11th Consultative Meeting with Civil Society Institutions (2023)

7. Ahlia University — Ahlia Youth 2023: Empowering Tomorrow’s Leaders

8. Ahlia University — Tamkeen and Bahraini Entrepreneurs (2023)

Evidence period: 1 January 2021–31 December 2025.