--- title: Kent celebrates further success with Designers and Drafters Programme with talent development award date: 2026-09-24T14:12:00+01:00 author: Alex Chisholm canonical_url: "https://kentplc.com/news-insights/kent-celebrates-further-success-with-designers-and-drafters-programme" section: Blog --- 24 Sept 2026 Press Releases & Featured Stories # Kent celebrates further success with Designers and Drafters Programme with talent development award ![Banners 4]() Kent’s Designers and Drafters Development Programme has celebrated further success by winning the ATD Middle East Excellence in Talent Development Award, recognising the programme’s success in creating a sustained pipeline of Emirati technical talent for the energy sector. Launched in 2024, the programme gives Emirati high school graduates, diploma holders and final-year engineering students a structured route into design and drafting careers. Participants combine foundation learning with hands-on CAD training, discipline-specific drafting practice, professional mentoring and supervised experience within Kent’s engineering project teams. The programme was developed through collaboration across Kent's teams with support from the Abu Dhabi Vocational Education and Training Institute and Higher Colleges of Technology. Training takes place at Kent’s dedicated academy in Abu Dhabi, which is equipped with professional design software and accredited by OPITO and ECITB. By developing skilled designers and drafters in the UAE, Kent is strengthening in-country engineering capability, supporting Emiratization and creating new opportunities for the next generation of technical professionals. 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