Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka is United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women. She brings a wealth of experience and expertise to this position, having devoted her career to issues of human rights, equality and social justice. Ms. Mlambo-Ngcuka has worked in government and civil society, and with the private sector, and was actively involved in the struggle to end apartheid in her home country of South Africa. From 2005 to 2008, she served as Deputy President of South Africa, overseeing programmes to combat poverty and bring the advantages of a growing economy to the poor, with a particular focus on women. She was a Member of Parliament from 1994 to 1996 as part of South Africa’s first democratic government. She is the founder of the Umlambo Foundation, which supports leadership and education. A longtime champion of women’s rights, she is affiliated with several organizations devoted to education, women’s empowerment and gender equality.

Now UAE’s Minister of State for International Cooperation, Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy joined the Federal Government in 2008 as Minister of State. She has played a vital role in several of the UAE’s crucial international projects like their bid to host the World Expo 2020 in Dubai, where she serves as the Director General and a board representative on the higher committee. In addition to her current roles, she holds responsibility within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the UAE’s bilateral relations with India, Pakistan, Sub-Saharan African countries and the Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Al Hashimy is also Chairperson of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority and Chairperson of Dubai Cares. H.E. Reem started her career as Commercial Attaché and, subsequently, went on to become Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Washington, D.C. She holds a Master's degree in International Relations from Harvard University.

Afra Al Basti is a Member of the Federal National Council and the Director General of the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children. Mrs. Al Basti is also a member of the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking and a committee member of the Universal Periodic Report (UPR) on Human Rights. Ms. Al Basti represents women and human rights issues around the world and works to build coalitions through her commitment and participation in numerous national and international conferences and forums. Mrs. Al Basti holds a Bachelor degree in Applied Science – Biochemistry and Biology from UAE University and has dedicated twenty eight years of her career to the service of the higher education. In 2004, she became the Executive Manager of Business Development at Dubai World Trade Center. She was appointed as the Executive Director of Dubai Foundation for Women and Children in 2007, and a member of the Federal National Council in 2011. Mrs. Al Basti has participated in local, regional and international conferences with regards to women’s leadership and education and has taken pride to have received commendable recognition's.

A French – Swiss binational, Joelle has over 28 years’ experience in purchasing with Procter & Gamble. Joelle currently serves as the Director for Purchases in the Indian Subcontinent, Middle East and Africa, where she oversees several billion dollars of purchasing spending, including chemicals, packaging, services and other supplies for all of P&G’s operations in the region. Throughout her career, Joelle has developed a mastery in leading global purchasing operations and large organizational transformations. Having lived and worked in 6 countries and 3 continents, she has experience dealing with diverse organization and supplier bases. After studying in France and in the UK, Joelle began her career with P&G in 1989, in Belgium, in P&G European Chemicals purchases. She moved to Venezuela in 1996, spending three years in P&G Latin America Headquarters, before moving back to Europe in Geneva to lead Direct material purchasing for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, moving onwards to various roles as Global Purchases Director for Packaging, then Services, and Global External Supply Solutions. Joelle moved to Dubai in 2015, to take up her current role. Joelle has an MBA from the Ecole de Hautes Etudes Commerciales, and lives in the UAE with her two daughters and husband. Her interests include marathon and trail running, skiing and hiking.

Previously a Partner in Deloitte LLP for 9 years in the UK. Primarily as an Audit Partner but also leading various advisory projects including public sector consulting and regulatory consulting projects as well as insolvent and members voluntary liquidations. Regularly worked cross service line and across multiple jurisdictions to deliver multidisciplinary projects in to the UK Offshore and International market.

Sandy is the Head of Brand Marketing for Google Asia Pacific. She is the brand guardian and evangelist of Google’s commitment and values. She is responsible for marketing strategy development for Google’s programs across Asia Pacific region. Since she joined in 2012, she started marketing activities and contributed to drive Google to become the most loved consumer brand in Indonesia. Growing up in Indonesia, she is deeply passionate in positively impacting lives and improving the nation. Her current task is to promote the role of technology to level up the playing field for everyone and to ensure more people have skills they need to succeed in a digital world. One of the programs that is close to her heart is Womenwill, a Google’s global effort to help women make the most of technology to grow and succeed. Sandy is an experienced global marketer, with more than 14 years of brand management track record of the world renowned brands, including Kraft and Nescafe. Sandy holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Indonesia.

Sadaffe Abid is founder CIRCLE Pakistan, a social enterprise that aims to increase women's participation in the economy, business & startups both in Pakistan and regionally. CIRCLE is based on the belief that investing in women is the smartest economic venture of today and brings stakeholders to make progress on SDGs 5, 8 and 17.. Sadaffe was founding team member, COO and later CEO of Kashf Foundation, a Forbes 50 global MFI that she helped grow from two rooms to serve 300,000 clients and disburse USD 200M in micro loans to women clients in Pakistan. Sadaffe is INSEAD’s Social Entrepreneur-in-Residence. She is an advisor for the Dell Women Entrepreneurs Network DWEN, on the board of Pakistan Microfinance Network and Indus Earth. She completed her Masters at the Harvard Kennedy School, Advanced Management Program at INSEAD and her B.A. at Mount Holyoke College. She is a recipient of the Mount Holyoke Alumni Achievement Award for her service. Her work at Kashf has been mentioned in Nicholas Kristoff's book, Half the Sky and Isobel Coleman's, Paradise Beneath Her Feet.

I come from Cuba, and have a passion for sport that comes from practicing since a young age. Sport has shaped my life, through practicing sport and working in the sport industry, I have been able to learn and thrive both as a human being and as a professional. Having a strong athlete background, I bring forth a unique experience; enabling me to achieve what others believe impossible. Graduated in sport sciences in 2000, I have spent the past 17 years working in sports both at national and international level. After finishing university, I worked in a rural area in Cuba as a physical education teacher and a community coach. The following year my university called me to teach sport history and management and I was selected to start a PhD programme. The latter is still on my to-do list. At the age of 27, I travelled for the first-time outside Cuba, to pursue an International Masters. I boarded a plane to the unknown, with little idea of what will happen ahead. It was the start of a journey, that led me to work on a global scale for the past thirteen years. I have worked at the International Olympic Committee, the World Archery Federation and for almost a decade at FIFA. My role at FIFA has been focussed on creating a growth portfolio that reached over 190 nations (2008-2016); which earned the backing from top leaders, increasing funding invested in the programmes to USD22m in 2014. I led a group of world class individuals. The results of our efforts resonated internationally, and women’s football has risen dramatically during the last decade becoming a core pillar for football development.

A French national, Jamila has been with Procter & Gamble for 15 years, working in a number of Purchasing roles. As the Global Purchases Group Manager for Celebrities, Alliances and Communications Purchases , Jamila leads major Agency transformations programs. Based in Geneva, Jamila leads the expansion of the supplier diversity program outside of the US and is personally engaged with promoting gender equality throughout P&G’s supplier base in the Europe, Indian Subcontinent, Middle East and Africa region. Jamila graduated from the Engineering High School of les Arts & Métiers in France. She also has a Masters in Logistics from the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. She is a proud mum of three daughters aged eleven, eight and five. Her family and beliefs fuel her passion for promoting gender equality, as well as her interests in innovation, people, continuous learning and promoting development. Her North Africa family Heritage makes her develop a very close link to the IMEA region.

Is the Chairperson of the Sharjah Consultative Council, marking the first time a woman has held the post.A first in the history of Sharjah’s highest advisory body since its inception in 1999.

As the Director General of Sharjah Women’s Sport Foundation, Nada Askar Al Naqbi is responsible for ensuring the provision of the very best sports and fitness facilities for its members. Holding numerous senior regional policy-making positions in the sports fields, including basketball, karate and taekwondo, Nada has taken a leading role in organising premium pan-Arab women tournaments, including the Arab Women Sports Tournament, the Asian Games and the GCC Women’s Games.

Anna Fälth is the Manager of EmpowerWomen.org, UN Women’s community-driven global online platform that promotes collaboration, learning and innovation to advance women’s economic empowerment in over 190 economies. Anna manages the UN Women flagship programme on Women’s Entrepreneurship and Gender-responsive Procurement; and the Secretariat of the Women’s Empowerment Principles, helping the private sector promote gender equality in the workplace, marketplace and community. She is also developing a virtual skills school, We Learn, that will tackle some of the skills gaps faced by women and girls across the globe. An economist, Anna has more than 20 years of experience as advisor within the UN system, including UNCTAD, UN-DESA, UNDP and UN Women. She has a Masters in Economics from Lund University, Sweden, and a Masters in Law and Economic from Hamburg University, Germany.

Alice Laughter is the Co-Chair of UNGC’s Women’s Empowerment Network in UAE and the CEO Committed to Good (CTG) providing unique support to the humanitarian and development community in high-risk environments, specializing in the rapid mobilization of personnel and projects. Alice started by incorporating CTG’s headquarter office in Dubai in 2007, and quickly expanded the existing operations from focusing solely on Afghanistan to include international humanitarian and development aid organizations worldwide. The CTG team of Ebola fighters was included in Time magazine’s ‘Person of the Year’ awards in 2014. Today CTG is operational in 25 countries. . Alice is on the Steering Committee for the United Nations Global Compact local network in the UAE and chairs their Business For Peace Programme and the United Nations Women’s Empowerment Principles taskforce for the region. CTG is committed to the Force for Good and Impact 2030 and the global Agenda for Humanity.

Anvita brings rich international experience in technology and digital space, an active investor and passionate about start-up ecosystem. She serves on several boards of VCs and companies and co-founded Dubai Angel Investors seeking to invest in early-stage online startups. She was the COO for Naspers Group, Middle East and Africa managing three leading online classifieds companies (Dubizzle, OLX, Shedd) for 20 countries. Prior, she was the Regional Managing Director of the biggest e-commerce venture Lazada in South East Asia which got later acquired by Alibaba for 3.5BN USD. She has worked with Google M&A in London, has a background in R&D tech in India and Silicon Valley and pursued an MBA from INSEAD.

Fahmi Quadir is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Safkhet Capital, a New York based short-only hedge fund founded in 2017. Named after the ancient Egyptian goddess of knowledge, accounting, mathematics, and wisdom, the fund makes concentrated investments against fraudulent companies to deliver superior alpha and help clear the market of abusive forces. Her dedication, skill, and fearlessness in uncovering the truth in companies through forensic due diligence has earned her the nickname of “The Assassin”. Prior to starting her own hedge fund at the age of 26, Ms. Quadir managed short investments at Krensavage Asset Management. Ms. Quadir began her career at Deallus Consulting, where she advised executives at top-5 global pharmaceutical companies on strategy and achieving a competitive edge. Throughout her career, Ms. Quadir has experienced the hardships of gender inequality in the corporate and STEM worlds. The daughter of Bangladeshi-Muslim immigrants, Fahmi was raised to always act with social consciousness and she is committed to supporting women globally, mentoring at Safkhet, and using her position to help nurture women’s talents and amplify their voices. Ms. Quadir graduated from Harvey Mudd College with a Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics and Biology. She resides in New York City.

Virginia Tan is the co-founder and president of Lean In China, a women's platform with over 100,000 members across more than 25 cities and 100 universities in China, which supports the goals and aspirations of Chinese women. She has spoken at UNICEF, Baidu, General Electric, Bloomberg, the British Council, Facebook, the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University, Tsinghua University, Singapore Management University, etc and has been filmed by BBC, Reuters, CCTV and Vice. She co-founded Her Startup in 2015, the first cross border startup competition for women tech entrepreneurs as well as She Loves Tech，a global initiative focusing on technology by women and technology for women. She is also the founding partner of Teja Ventures, Asia's first gender lens venture capital fund, which targets early stage women impact companies. Virginia's background is in law and finance, where she was an experienced finance lawyer for more than 8 years specialising on energy, resources and infrastructure sectors in emerging markets, and has worked in Europe, Middle East, Asia, Africa and South America for 2 magic circle firms. She moved to Beijing in 2013 to work on strategic investments related to the "One Belt One Road" initiative on behalf of Chinese state owned companies and financial institutions.

Anu Bhardwaj is the founder of Women INVESTING in Women Digital (WIIW Digital) since 2014. Prior to founding WIIW DIGITAL, Bhardwaj spearheaded the 2010-2013 U.S. Department of Commerce Private Equity/Venture Capital Certified Trade Missions to the Nordics and Middle East, representing over $175 billion USD private-equity and venture-capital interests in collaboration with the International Trade Administration, the U.S. Embassies in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, the Royal Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Sultanate of Oman. Her specialties include international business development for private equity professionals, women in private equity, women in philanthropy, high-growth women entrepreneurs, Angel Networks/Angel Capital focusing on women and crowd funding initiatives focusing on women.

1998, Acquired a qualifying degree of Master of Social Sciences at Vytautas Magnus University (commercial law). 1995, Acquired a qualifying degree of Bachelor of Business and Management at Vytautas Magnus University. She is a former Vice-Minister of Economy (2016-2017). She was responsible for the EU affairs, innovation and investment policies as well as for the coordination and control of their implementation. Mrs. Sabaitienė has experience in the field of promoting innovation and investment in Lithuania and has a broad view of the Lithuanian economic situation and perspective, as for 19 years she has been involved in dealing with issues regarding industry, business regulation, local authorities in Lithuania. 9 years of her professional carrier she was representing Lithuania in various formats in Brussels, where she served as a Deputy Attaché for Economic Affairs and Project Coordinator at the Permanent Representation of Lithuania to the EU, also as the Head of the Brussels Office of the Association of Local Authorities in Lithuania.

Mr. Abdullatif Al Sayegh is one of the Arab world’s most distinguished media pioneers and respected thought leaders in integrated communications and entrepreneurship. He created and launched Alsayegh Media in 2010. He joined the Government of Dubai establishing one of the UAE’s largest and most diverse media corporate in the region. Handpicked by His Highness Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, he was responsible for and built an enviable portfolio of media assets. As one of the pioneers of new media in the UAE, he established Alsayegh Media which was the first Emirati-owned integrated communications agency. Abdullatif Alsayegh was recognized as the ‘CEO of the Year’ by the CEO World Forum in 2007, and honored as one of the ‘Top 25 Most Influential Personalities in the Arab World,’ by The Times newspaper in 2008.

Rizwan Beyg is a well known label in the subcontinent. Having trained as an architect his subsequent foray into fashion on 1990 was motivated by a need to explore his cultural heritage via the customs,traditions and the rich textile heritage of the subcontinent. Having worked out of an urban setting Beyg decided to explore the untapped talent of the women of Pakistan whose exquisite embroideries were produced in the rural areas . This exploratory begining 11 years ago today has translated into a comprehensive mapping of the various crafts and skills of the women of all 4 provinces and the formation of vocational training centres that train and provide a fair wage income to the women of rural Pakistans small villages . The production of embroideries by these women is then sold through the Rizwan Beyg label via multi label stores and online sales and has gone beyond just a basic skill development program to one of sustainable income and is more of a social enterprise than a charitable trust

Randah Taher’s work is grounded in the design facilitation, leadership development, creative environments and cultures of innovation. In addition to her Management & Education degrees, she earned a Master of Science in Creativity, Innovation and Change Leadership from Statue University New York.

Hana Al Syead has over 25 years of combined experience in system’s engineering, business and banking operations, marketing, international relations and technology solutions’ development. She is an expert in the creation of organizational transformation strategies with a proven track record in building sustainable systems that promote efficiency, effectiveness and progress continuity. Her holistic approach to building such systems gained her work the recognition as best practice. She is currently a member of the senior leadership team at Olayan Financing Company, a leading family-owned conglomerate in Saudi Arabia. Hana’a launched a career that reflects her multidisciplinary education in science, business and literature after obtaining her academic credentials in the USA. She joined the Saudi financial sector at SAMBA, a Citibank affiliate at that time, and worked in various banking divisions where she successfully led a countrywide reengineering project, was a catalyst in leading the bank’s Total Quality Management System across its operations in KSA, and represented Saudi Arabia in Citibank’s (AP-CEMEA) region. Her banking career concluded at United Saudi Bank in the position of Director of Marketing and Product Development. In 2001, Hana joined Olayan where she led strategic projects including project GAIN which improved efficiency and productivity and doubled the target in a record time, project ONWARD which launched the employment of women in factories in the country, and the organization’s strategic relations with the World Economic Forum and SAGIA. She headed the corporate communications division prior to assuming her current responsibility as the Head of Diversity and Chairwoman of Olayan Women Network -- a pioneer role by Olayan in the region. Her work in diversity continues to attract local and international attention, and recognition as a best practice by the World Economic Forum, a published regional case study and an academic business case. Hana’a is an Advisor on Women’s Economic Participation to the Global Women’s Leadership Program, an initiative of the University of Pennsylvania – Law School (Penn Law). She served as a member of the board of directors of a Women for Sustainable Growth, a Sweden based not-for-profit organization focusing on women’s professional and business development, which enhances cultural exchange between Scandinavia and GCC. She is a member of the Board of Directors Institute (BDI) and a founding Steering Committee member of the 30% Club GCC Chapter which aims to enhance women representations in Boards in the GCC. Since 2015, Hana advocates the economic inclusion of women by conducting workshops, dialogue sessions, and by sharing and applying best practices from across the globe. Hana’a holds a Master of Science degree in computer information systems from Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts, and a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science and international management with a minor in French literature from Simmons College in Boston. She has attended executive programs at Wharton and Harvard, the most recent was the Women On Boards program at HBS. She is a writer with an avid interest in fiction, memoir and young adult genres, and an adventurer in the arts.

Ambassador Inas Sayed Mekkawy is a senior diplomat in the Arab League. She is currently the Director of the Department of Women, Family and Childhood and nominated for the post of Head of Mission of the League of Arab States in India. She has more than 25 years of experience in Arab affairs and international relations, sustainable development and empowerment of women and cultural affairs. , And the development and implementation of development projects at the national and regional levels. She has worked with regional and international organizations on planning, implementing and evaluating programmes in the fields of social development, governance, and women's empowerment. She has a vast Experience and expertise in Arab and African affairs, strategic planning and policy development , Regional partnerships with the United Nations on women's empowerment, implementation of the Millennium Development Goals, and the participation in the development of the sustainable development agenda 2030, and in the expansion of partnerships and cooperation between the Arab region Regional and, in particular, African, European, South American and China in promoting the rights and conditions of women and children at the regional and international levels. She organized the second Arab Summit in 2010. She took a lead role in holding the first Arab women's summit in Cairo and all subsequent regional forums for women's empowerment at the Arab and international level , She participated in the 2nd Annual Commemoration of World Alliance of Religions’ Peace (WARP) Summit, and in the First International Forum of Women Leaders of the South American and Arab Countries “ASPA”; with in-depth knowledge and understanding of the status of women's rights in Arab Region and issues of women, peace and security in armed conflicts on a. Regional level, and she has also worked in several areas at the political, social and cultural levels and on issues of gender equality and the empowerment of women, the promotion of cultural cooperation and international Arab cooperation with United Nations organizations, the European Union, the European Parliament and a number of other Arab, regional and international institutions in the fields of human rights, Sustainable development. Amb. Mekkawy has developed a number of important documents at the regional level in the areas of women and children, such as the Cairo Declaration on Arab Women and the Strategic Plan of Action for the Implementation of the Development Agenda 2030 for Women in the Arab Region, adopted at the summit level in March 2017, the Development Agenda for Family in the Arab Region 2030,the Development Agenda for Investment in Childhood in the Arab Region 2030, and the regional strategy and Executive plan of action on the "Protection of Arab Women: Peace and Security" and the Khadija Women's Economic Empowerment Network, the first Arab initiative to empower women economically.

Having over 17 years of experience in the I.T sector, Ms. Noor acquired the leadership position of the Director of the eGovernment in the emirate of Sharjah, a position she has held since January 2014. Since then, she has been driving the Department of eGovernment to meet and exceed the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) needs of the Citizens of the Emirate of Sharjah, be it Government, Public or Private Sector. Prior to this, she served as the Managing Director of Customer Care from 2012 till 2013 and as Managing Director of I.T from 2008 – 2012 at Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA). Ms. Noor brings a wealth of experience along with management capabilities and innovativeness leading the Emirate’s technological advancements. Some of the success stories in the recent past have been, acquiring a Tier III Modular Mobile Data center for the Sharjah Government, Implementing a self-service Portal offering the eGovernment service catalog to the government entities, Initiating a community cloud project that will serve as a platform for XaaS (anything as a service).

Tom Nauwelaerts is the Managing Director of Momentum Logistics, assuming office in July 2016. With over 25 years of experience in supply chain management across numerous markets, including the CIS, Far East and the Middle East region, Tom will be responsible for steering the expansion of Momentum Logistics in the 3PL industry.  Prior to joining Momentum Logistics, Tom worked for YBA Kanoo as the head of their logistics division across the Middle East. With over eight years of experience in the Middle East, Tom held also the position of Managing Director at Al-Futtaim Logistics.   Prior to this he served as Group CEO of WWL-ALS Freight Management Group in the UK and as General Manager Logistics for Ahlers Logistics and Maritime Services, headquartered in Belgium. During these tenures, Tom oversaw specialized logistics services, such as project forwarding, chartering, and retail and automotive logistics solutions in Transport and Warehousing for fast-growth markets. With his extensive travel and exposure to varied cultures and business environments, Tom is said to have a very adaptive management style and an ability to connect to all levels in an organization. Tom has won a number of prestigious Industry awards such as “Supply Chain Manager of the year” award from LOG ME and “Outstanding Achievement of the Year” award from SCATA Middle East. Tom obtained Post-graduate degrees in Business Administration and Corporate Finance from the Graduate School of Economics and Business at Leuven University.

Senior Finance Executive with over 20 years working as senior consultant and project manager developing and implementing MSME solutions to Banks and Microfinance Institutions. She has been working for IPC, Accion International, Women’s World Banking and joined recently Frankfurt School of Finance and Management to develop further Frankfurt School`s approach to sustainable gender finance. With her global perspective and extensive work experience in Africa, Latin America, Asia and Middle East, she advised financial institutions in designing sustainable financial products serving the MSME sector as well as the unserved and underbanked population. Her recent experiences in Africa, Egypt and India focused on strengthening the capacity of financial institutions to implement a customer centric approach by developing products and services that attend the needs of the different segments of the population with specific focus on women. Her solid knowledge in managerial and commercial experience allows her to drive change and to support institutional capacity building. In her recent professional career she has been supporting financial institution in developing a holistic value proposition to serve the women`s market, specifically women in business as well as to drive financial inclusion of women. Ms. Wittlinger holds a Diploma from Tubingen University in Economics and has been author and co-author of a number of publications.

15 years - Student at Khalifa Islamia School Passion: The two things that I’m most passionate about are equality and sustainability. I want to inspire every person, regardless of their gender, to be able to contribute towards sustaining the resources of our planet for future generations. I wish to reach a position where I can be empowered to make meaningful changes so that the world can be a better place to live.

Dr Behjat Al Yousuf is interim Provost and Professor of Practice at the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, part of the Khalifa University of Science and Technology. Dr Behjat has over 22 years of experience in higher education leadership and advancing science and technology academic standing and Professor of Practice at Masdar Institute. She also is affiliated with the Department of Engineering Systems and Management, working closely with its faculty in the area of Engineering of Systems and the Management of Technology (innovation). She also advises MSc and PhD students and serves as part of their Research Committees. Dr. Al Yousuf’s academic experience started in 1990 at the Higher Colleges of Technology. Dr. Al Yousuf was the Associate Director of Dubai Women’s College from 2006 to 2012. In 1990, she was a faculty member of the Information Technology Program and then became the Information Technology Program Chair in 2001. During this time, Dr. Al Yousuf led a strategic approach in delivering excellence in academia to help increase UAE national women in the IT workforce to above 90% through industry partnership. She also led the development of the Center for Human Capital Development at Zayed University in 2012. Dr. Al Yousuf serves on different international and regional groups such as the United Nations Global Alliances for Information Development (UN GAID), World Federation of Women Engineering, International Taskforce for Women in Technology, Women Center for ICT and Women Educational Worldwide, Dubai Quality Group, etc. Her work has helped in empowering women in the knowledge economy through sustaining women’s careers in the field of technology and science. In April 2009, Dr. Al Yousuf became a member of the UN GAID Strategic Council for ICT Development. Dr. Al Yousuf received her PhD in Software Engineering from Reading University, UK, her MSc in Computer Science from Cardiff University, UK and a BSc in Computer Engineering from University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA. She was awarded prestigious United Arab Emirates Business Women Award for Career Achievements in 2006 and Sheikh Rashid Award for Scientific Achievement, in addition to outstanding community and leadership awards. In April 2008, INSEAD and The National newspaper deemed Dr. AlYousuf one of 20 most influential women in UAE.

Head of Communications & Public Affairs, Roche Diagnostics Middle East Maysoun Ramadan, Head of Communications & Public Affairs of Roche Diagnostics Middle East, wears many hats, including the role of speaker at women’s forums, active member of business communicators association and a public speaking advisor. At Roche Diagnostics, she drives strategic external communications in 16 countries and internal communications for over 450 employees across the region, backed by over 10 years of experience in the medical and marketing industry. Her role includes directing all strategic marketing communications and branding activities across the region from and managing all PR activity working in tandem with diverse stakeholders, including health regulators, NGOs, patient groups and the media. Maysoun was the driving force behind establishing a Communications and Public Affairs Department in Dubai within the organization, which is focused on finding ways to adapt to a fast-changing industry and region and align it all with the organization’s goals. She is on Roche Diagnostics Middle East’s leadership team and its youngest member. She directs the MeDia Talks initiative, a press program tackling industry issues and raising awareness on important health topics in the region connecting media, patients and various healthcare stakeholders. An ardent advocate of women’s leadership, she has been an active speaker at platforms like the prestigious Global Women In Leadership (WIL) Economic Forum, which is an event endorsed by the UAE Ministry of Economy, and assembles nearly 500 international male and female business leaders, policy makers and young female professionals and entrepreneurs. In 2017, she delivered a captivating keynote address on finding one’s leadership bliss to an audience of leading women from across the region. She is also the recipient of prestigious awards, featuring as one of The Holmes Report's Innovator 25 (2017) - for elevating and evolving engagement and influence within the marketing and communications industry. Maysoun is a founding member of the GCC chapter of IABC International Association of Business Communicators and which is in the process of being established. She is a passionate and vocal advocate of women’s health initiatives. Her extensive experience in oncology such as breast cancer, hematology, and other diseases allows her to develop strategic communications campaigns that focus on driving early diagnosis and treatment to help people live longer and better lives. A Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy graduate from the University of Jordan, Maysoun is also certified in Arabic editing and TV presenting. She is of mixed Jordanian and Turkish descent.

Rania Rostom is Chief Innovation Officer for GE in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, and is responsible for leading innovation strategy for the region. Her work is focused on finding solutions for our customers’ challenges through innovative and collaborative thinking and processes. She also leads GE’s Ecomagination and Healthymagination initiatives for MENAT. Through a network of regional GE Innovation Centers, globally-recognized open innovation challenges, and other initiatives, Rania has cemented GE as an essential part of the regional innovation ecosystem. She is a co-author of Mapping the Future of Work in MENAT.

Dr. Mari Luomi is a Senior Research Fellow at the Emirates Diplomatic Academy (EDA), Abu Dhabi. Specialised in politics and political economy of natural resources and the environment, Dr. Luomi is an expert on international climate politics and climate and energy policy in the Gulf Cooperation Council nations. She holds a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies and has worked for research institutes in the fields of international affairs, regional studies and energy studies in Finland, Qatar and the United Kingdom. Dr. Luomi holds previous experience as the Vice-President of the Finnish International Studies Association, Researcher at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs, Post-Doctoral Fellow at Georgetown University in Qatar, and Research Associate with the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies to name a few. As part of a team of thematic experts, she has provided independent reporting on-site from intergovernmental negotiations on climate change, and has written hundreds of news stories on multilateral developments in the fields of climate change and sustainable energy policy globally. Her research publications include a broad range of working and briefing papers, academic journal articles, essays, books and book chapters. She is also the co-editor of the recently-published volume 'The Green Economy in the Gulf' (Routledge 2015).

Esther Ndichu is the Vice President of Public Affairs for UPS in the Indian Subcontinent, Middle East and Africa based in Dubai. In her role she is responsible for public/government and customs affairs for the region. Until recently, Ndichu was responsible for the UPS Foundation’s global humanitarian engagements working with various organizations in the humanitarian space. As a logistician she has worked in various capacities at UPS and is able to lend her experience to the organizations she works with. Her passion for working in the humanitarian sector was captured in TED Talk titled "Hunger isn't a food issue. Its a logistics issue." Having started her career at Ryder Systems 18years ago, she has been at UPS for the last 13 years working in various roles from air network planning, industrial engineering and revenue management and customer solutions. Ndichu’s passion for working for a global logistics company world stems from her interest in International affairs and a vested interest in seeing UPS expand into Indian Subcontinent Middle East and Africa region where she is currently based. Esther was born in Nairobi, Kenya and holds a B.A. in International Relations from the College of Wooster, Wooster OH and a MBA from the American Intercontinental University in Atlanta. Esther speaks English and Swahili.

Sharmeen Chinoy is a two time Academy Award and three time Emmy Award winning documentary filmmaker. In the past 16 years, she has made a dozen multi-award winning films in over 10 countries around the world. Her films include Song of Lahore, Saving Face, A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness and Journey of a Thousand Miles: Peacekeepers. Her work has taken her around the world, where she has filmed and worked with refugees, women’s advocacy groups, and human rights defenders. By bringing their voices to the outside world, she has often helped them bring about a critical change in their community.

Dr. Amal Ibrahim Al Ali is an Emarati coach and corporate trainer, is the founder and CEO of Cardiff Management Consultants. She is a Certified Instructor in Applied Innovation: OpenGenius, a trained Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) Practitioner and uses NLP technique to unblock problematic thinking to restore creativity. As a former Sharjah Government Director of government communications. Dr. Amal has an enviable reputation for excellence in the varying fields of communications, information technologies, creative industries, education, governance and international relations.

Dima Najim has over 13 years of experience working in the MENA region in senior NGO roles. Prior to joining EFE, Dima served as part of the World Wildlife Foundation - UAE fundraising team. Before moving to the UAE, she held the position of Chief Operations Officer of Relief International/MSME in Iraq, and in 2010 was part of the team assigned by AGFUND to establish the first microfinance bank in Syria, where she assumed the role of Operations Manager. Also, she was part of UNRWA's Microfinance Department management team. Dima has significant professional experience in women and youth empowerment and financial inclusion, in addition to her experience in partnership management, fundraising and operations management of NGOs. Born and raised in the MENA region, Dima holds a BA in accounting from Damascus University and a Master’s degree in finance from the Arab Academy for Banking and Financial Sciences.

Gender, Management and International Development Specialist Reem is currently working as the consultant of the “Gender Pay Equity” program of the International Labour Organization. She led the successful launch of the National Committee for Pay Equity “NCPE” in Jordan, which is currently advocating for the amendments of the Jordanian Labour Law to win the support of both the Parliament and the Government of Jordan in having law that guarantees gender equality, The NCPE also works towards the elimination of pay discrimination in the workplace. In 2015, she founded with a group of teachers the “Stand up with Teachers Campaign” to lobby for fair wages in private schools. Reem is the co-founder of SADAQA, a Non-for-Profit Organization working towards a “Friendly Work Environment for Women and Working Families”. SADAQA is currently focusing on ensuring access of working parents to day care facilities for their children while at work. Reem worked for over15 years with the Canadian Government. She has a vast experience and consulting in the field of women economic empowerment which include work with the World Bank; USAID funded projects; Global Affairs Canada; Queen Rania Teachers Academy; and Adam Smith International; amongst others. Reem is the recipient of CIDA’s Director General’s Award of 2009.

Kawthar Bin Sulayem is an Emirati entrepreneur, mentor, media personality and ambassador for several UAE based charity organisations. Her professional roles see her as the CEO & Founder of KBS Communications, Brand Ambassador and Co-Founder of Mestaria and Founder of Fashion Fever. Kawthar expressed her entrepreneurial spirit and passion for bettering the UAE from a young age. Following her education at NYU, Kawthar took on several strategic positions within the UAE, including her time as Media Manager at the Executive Office of Dubai where she was an integral team member responsible for a multitude of Government projects including the positioning and rebranding of the Dubai Government. In 2009, Kawthar was seconded by the Government of Abu Dhabi to lead the GCC communications strategy of Yas Marina Circuit as they prepared to host the inaugural Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - the largest and most prominent sporting event in the UAE. In 2012, Kawthar incorporated KBS Communications, an Abu Dhabi based integrated communications agency specialising in education, luxury, hospitality, fashion and beauty. Growth within the fashion industry led Kawthar to found Fashion Fever in 2014, an exclusive fashion show themed around specific culture, arts and sporting events with the aim to empower women. Her experience in the arts led her to Co-Found Mestaria in 2015, an artist representation enterprise focused on supporting Middle East artists by enabling them to focus on their strengths through fostering creative freedom. Kawthar is optimistic about her vision for human capital development in the UAE and plans to use her standing as a means to represent her motherland at home and abroad. Her mission is to continually create engaging platforms for youth and women to diversify the UAE economy.

Dr Nawal Al-Hosany is the Director of Zayed Future Energy Prize and the Deputy Director General of the Emirates Diplomatic Academy in Abu Dhabi.   In her role at the Zayed Future Energy Prize, Dr Al-Hosany oversees a US $4 million annual award that recognises outstanding achievements in the fields of renewable energy and sustainability. During her tenure, the Prize has expanded its global footprint across 112 countries and positively impacted around 307 million people worldwide. As the Deputy Director General of the Emirates Diplomatic Academy (EDA) since October 2017, Dr Al-Hosany contributes to the realization of the EDA’s mandate: To equip the UAE’s current and future diplomats with the relevant knowledge and multi-disciplinary skills to effectively serve their nsation.   Dr. Al-Hosany is also the Programme Director of the Women in Sustainability, Environment and Renewable Energy (WiSER) initiative since its formation in 2015; an initiative that aims to highlight, empower and catalyze the role of women in sustainability. Previously, Dr Al-Hosany has served as Executive Director of Sustainability and Brand at Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company where she was mandated to oversee Masdar’s Sustainability Department, Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and the Marketing Communications Department.   She currently serves as a Board member of the newly formed Khalifa University of Science and Technology, and a board member of the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre at the University of Manchester, UK.   Prior to assuming her current roles, Dr Al-Hosany held senior leadership positions with the General Headquarters of the Abu Dhabi Police, including Head of Design and Studies in the Engineering Department. In 2007, she became the first-ever female Deputy Director in the Abu Dhabi Police.

Bel Pesce studied at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she majored in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, and Management Science. She lived in Silicon Valley, accumulating experiences while interning in large corporations (Google and Microsoft), and working on technology startups (Ooyala), as well as being part of the founding team of Lemon Wallet company. After six years in the USA breathing technology and entrepreneurship, she launched her first book, The Brazilian Girl from Silicon Valley, which quickly reached the mark of 1 million readers. She returned to Brazil in 2013 with the goal of founding FazINOVA. She is obsessed with increasing her repertoire, exploring new subjects, and learning to find solutions to her challenges and those around her. She is the founder of FazINOVA, a company whose mission is to update and prepare people and companies for the challenges of an ever-changing world. And of Enkla Editora, a publishing business that addresses complex subjects in a simple way, making all its contents more accessible, being also multiplatform. Bel is also a writer and author of four books on behavior and protagonism, which add up to more than 3 million readers (The Brazilian girl from Silicon Valley, Wanted: human superheroes, The Brazilian girl from Silicon Valley 2 and The best version of you takes you further). She also launched a comic book for children's (Bel's Adventures) and a game of innovation, creativity and brainstorming in partnership with Copag (Conecta Game). She was considered one of the "100 most influential people in Brazil" by Época magazine, one of the "30 most promising young people in Brazil", by Forbes Magazine, and was included in the list of "10 world leaders most admired by young people" of Cia de Talentos, alongside big names like Barack Obama, Bill Gates and Jorge Paulo Lemann. Bel was also the winner of the Women's Initiative Awards, and brought to Brazil, for the first time, the prestigious Cartier award that evaluates projects of women entrepreneurs from around the world. Bel is TED Fellow, and her talk "5 Ways to Kill Your Dreams" has been seen more than 4.5 million times. She was a columnist on CBN Radio, Exame PME Magazine, Estado de São Paulo Newspaper and João Dória Jr. Show Business Program.

Co-Founder & Executive Director of Equileap, Diana has significant experience in private and public philanthropy and social impact investing. She worked as Director of Development at the world's oldest international women's fund, Mama Cash, before setting up her own philanthropic consultancy firm in Amsterdam. Diana then moved to ABN AMRO bank where she was Head of Philanthropy Advice for nearly four years. Back in 2016, she launched Equileap, an organisation aiming to accelerate progress towards gender equality in the workplace.

Dr. Shayma Nawaf Al Fawwaz leveraged her world-class entrepreneurial and strategic planning skills to establish GOSSIP The Brand, which is based on innovation and creativity. Under GOSSIP’s umbrella falls several concepts such as ‘GOSSIP Cafe and Desserts,’ a gourmet cafe serving Euro-American cuisine and Emirati-inspired dishes, ‘Event Management,’ and several new upcoming concepts. GOSSIP is popular for using fresh organic ingredients in its 5-star cuisines and specialty desserts served in a warm, cozy cafe setting. Dr. Al Fawwaz has also held high-level positions in leading government and private institutions before founding GOSSIP. During this time, she spearheaded many important initiatives crucial to the advancement of the UAE’s health, financial, and education sectors, to name a few. As the Vice President for Healthcare sector at Mubadala Investment Company, she managed several international healthcare facilities, providing UAE citizens and residents with healthcare solutions at par with the rest of the world. She is also the former Chief Operating Officer of SAIS, one of the country’s leading educational institutions that provide an American-based educational curriculum within the framework of the UAE culture. SAIS is the first school in the UAE to fully integrate e-learning in its curriculum. In addition, Dr. Al Fawwaz also worked as a Director of International Investments at the Dubai International Financial Center, the fastest growing financial center in the MENA region hosting more than 700 local, regional, and global companies. She helped open up investment opportunities as well as raised equity and asset managed by several international companies in diversified sectors such as real estate, financial services, fashion, technology and art. She also initiated and led numerous global projects and was entrusted with the privilege of welcoming visiting foreign dignitaries and delegations. She was a former Board Member and Art Patron of Art Dubai Fair and was also a part of the Friends of Arts for Abu Dhabi Arts, backed with a wide knowledge on the arts, particularly in collecting art sculptures. Dr. Al Fawwaz was also a member of Medgate and has also held managerial positions such as Office Manager at Villa Moda, Asset Manager at Dubai Art and Office Manager for the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. She is part of the Emirates Business Women Council, Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, SAIS and the Golden Key National Honor Society in Washington DC as well. She used to reside in the US where she worked at the Children National Medical Center in Washington DC, one of America’s top 10 paediatric hospitals. Dr. Fawwaz obtained her PhD in genetics from George Washington University (GWU) in Washington DC. She also holds an EMBA from London Business School.

His Excellency Abdulla Al Saleh is Under Secretary of the Foreign Trade and Industry at the UAE Ministry of Economy. Among his responsibilities is to drive closer cooperation, increase trade and investment flows, and deepen economic ties between UAE and the world. He is the head of UAE Free Trade negotiations team. He is also board member at the Emirates Gender Balancing Council, which aims to increase women’s participation in national development across all sectors and develop their skills and provide them with the necessary tools to support the UAE’s future progress. He is member of the Advisory Boards several international and local universities. Earlier in his career, Al Saleh was a diplomat in UAE Embassies in the United States and France. He holds an MSc in International Politics from the American University in DC and a Bachelors degree of Political Sciences from the UAE University.

General Practitioner; Deputy Medical Director and Head of the Women's Wellness Initiative and Public Health, Dr Mai Al Jaber has over 10 years of experience practicing General Medicine in Abu Dhabi. Her career in healthcare began as a General Practitioner at Zayed Military Hospital (ZMH) in 2005, where she provided preventative care and treatment to patients while overseeing the implementation of ZMH’s continuing medical education program. In 2012, while working at Zayed Military Hospital, she developed and implemented several health education programmes for several military units. Dr Mai joined Healthpoint as General Practitioner; Deputy Medical Director and Head of the Women's Wellness Initiative and Public Health in 2013. She continues to be a leader in community by staying active on the boards for the UAE National Olympics Committee, the Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy and is a member of the Emirates Medical Association.

Luna Shamsuddoha has been Chairman of Dohatec New Media since 1992. Dohatec is a Certifying Authority issuing Digital Certificates and offers PKI tools and enablement solutions and she is also Managing director of Global Voice Ltd an IGW. Luna is the founder and president of Bangladesh Women in Technology, a trustee of Independent University Bangladesh, a member of the Council of Global Thought Leaders on Inclusive Growth in Switzerland, a member of the board of governors of the Underprivileged Children’s Educational Program, council member for Campaign for Popular Education CAMPE, director of Janata Bank (a state owned commercial bank) and also served on the Bangladeshi government’s Cyber Security Act drafting committee. She was recently awarded the DHL and The Daily Star’s Outstanding Woman in Business Bangladesh Business Award for her notable achievements as a woman entrepreneur in the local software industry. She has a master’s degree in international relations.

Elizabeth Filippouli is an entrepreneur and international business development expert. She is the Founder & CEO of Global Thinkers Forum (GTF), an international organisation that works as an agent for positive change by connecting international thought leaders and promoting values-based leadership, collaboration and cross-cultural understanding. GTF is a London-based and UK registered social-purpose organisation with presence in five countries: UK, Jordan, Turkey, Greece, UAE and a fast growth rate. It was launched in 2012 in Amman, Jordan under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania and is proud to have Board members representing more than 20 countries.

Barr. Nkiru Joy Okpala, is the National Coordinator of Association of Nigerian Women Business Network, a coalition of 18 Women Business Associations in Nigeria, as well as the National Coordinator of the Nigerian Network of Women Exporters of Services. An experienced and resolute Attorney, she runs her Law Firm (Confidence Chambers), in Nigeria, with many Lawyers in her employ. Joy is a prolific writer, an educationist, a mediator, and an advocate of great repute. She is a motivator for women and a force on gender issues. Through her efforts, many women have become part of the mainstream economy. She has received numerous awards of Recognition, Ingenuity, and Excellence for her erudite services, and has traversed across countries of the world, projecting the cause of women. Nkiru holds a Bachelor of Laws Degree (LL.B), a Barrister-at-Law Degree (B.L.), and a Master of Law in International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law (LL.M).

Jacqueline Kyosiimire-Lugemwa ‘Jackie’, has worked as a study investigator/scientist on a study investigating microbial translocation and T-cell activation in HIV ART-treated patients that stop or continue taking Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis in Uganda. In 2015–17, she received an IAVI Investigator initiated Research award to study the effect of pre-existing immune status and endemic infections on Hepatitis B vaccine mediated immune responses among HIV negative adult Ugandans. Jackie’s PhD research work was on Virologic and Immunologic studies of HIV-1 infected Long term non progressors and Rapid progressors in Uganda. This study was undertaken as part of the GISHEAL project funded through the European Union. She has won QBI Scholarship for Women from developing Nations in Biosciences, funded by the UN Women. For this scholarship she will be at the University of California San Francisco for 1 year to Identify the Molecular Program Underlying Differential Expression of PD1 in Long-Term Non-Progressors.

Arda Batu studied Political Science and International Relations at Bosphorus University. He completed his internship at the European Parliament and attained his MA degree from Marmara University European Studies Institute. His career began in 2004 at Yeditepe University’s Political Science & International Relations Department where he served as a research assistant. Batu transitioned to the corporate sector when he joined HB Consultancy Group in 2007 whilst continuing his affiliation with the university as a research assistant and lecturer. His keen interests in government relations and strategic communications led him to Istanbul-based regional corporate communications firm, StratejiCo. He joined Turkish Enterprise and Business Confederation on June 2014 where he manages, promotes and advances the Confederation’s strategic interests. Arda Batu serves on the executive board of Centre for Economics and foreign Policy Studies (EDAM), advisory board of Co-opinion, and the editorial board of Turkish Policy Quarterly.

The Executive Director at Alliance for Affordable Internet and Head of Digital Inclusion Programs at Web Foundation, Sonia N. Jorge is an expert in the confluence of development and communications policy. She has over 25 years of experience in a career spanning 30 countries in both private and not-for-profit sectors. Sonia is an avid advocate of gender equality in development, and has worked extensively to promote gender analysis and awareness in the ICT planning process, as well as an understanding of the importance of universal access and digital inclusion for development. Sonia is a frequent speaker at international, regional and national events, including at the World Economic Forum, Stockholm Internet Forum, Transform Africa, and several ITU events. She also serves as a member and expert in a number of Committees, including the DFID’s Digital Access Panel for Africa, the ITU-UN Women EQUALS Initiative, The World Economic Forum’s Future of the Internet Initiative, and others.

Mr. Abdullahi Omar Adan joined the Gulf African Bank in Kenya in September 2016 as their Head of Consumer Banking, where his role is to manage the retail and SME businesses. He is a seasoned Banker with over 11 years in the industry mainly in the Islamic Finance space where he worked in several Banks including Chase Bank (K) Ltd as the Head of Islamic Banking for over six years. He has also worked in First Community Bank Ltd and ABC Bank Kenya Ltd. Mr. Abdullahi holds a Global Executive MBA (GEMBA)-United States International University (USIU), Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from Kenya Methodist University, Programme for Management Development-Strathmore University/ Gordon Institute of Business (university of Pretoria) and a Diploma in Sales and Marketing - University of Nairobi. He has also attended various training programmes locally and internationally.

Yasmeen Lari is the first woman architect of Pakistan. She graduated from Oxford School of Architecture (now Oxford Brookes University), UK in 1963 and was elected Member of Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 1969. As President of Institute of Architects Pakistan (IAP) and first chairperson of Pakistan Council of Architects and Town Planners, Lari was instrumental in bringing about recognition for the professions of architecture and town planning. She retired from architectural practice in 2000 to devote full time to writing and heritage-related work. As UNESCO's National Advisor (2003-2005), she led the team that saved the endangered Shish Mahal ceiling in the Shah Burj (the Royal Tower) of the Lahore Fort World Heritage site. She is a member of UNESCO Consultative Committee for Mohenjo-Daro, Board Member of Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) and Trustee of Transparency International Pakistan. She is the author and co-author of several books.

Mariam Farag is leading the CSR program at MBC Group, which is responsible for driving its corporate responsibility vision and strategy in the region & globally. Founded & launched in 2013, MBC Group’s CSR arm, MBC Al Amal, is an ongoing interactive initiative that is the collective umbrella for the multitude of campaigns, initiatives, and contributions whether created, launched, supported or adopted by MBC Group. MBC Al Amal’s core focus is on the empowerment and development of Arab youth, for our future and theirs. Our strategy is also about developing and implementing initiatives to show our ongoing commitment to education, capacity building and work readiness, supporting entrepreneurship, and humanitarian causes. Farag brings to MBC Group over 20 years of experience working in the fields of social development, humanitarian relief, communication, corporate & social change in the MENA region & globally with UNDP, UNHCR, education and governmental sectors.

Sana Bagersh is CEO of BrandMoxie, an advertising agency based in Abu Dhabi, UAE. She is also Managing Editor of Tempo – a youth/community magazine that promotes innovation, social enterprise and community engagement. She served as board member at AmCham Abu Dhabi for four years; as Chair of its Women in Business Committee for two years, and Chair of its Arts and Culture Committee for another two. In 2009, Bagersh established Tamakkan, as a knowledge sharing platform that leverages the readiness of experts/ consultants to give back to the community. The initiative offers free seminars to entrepreneurs on topics such as funding, marketing, social media, leadership, franchising, new technologies. Bagersh is also Executive Producer of a short film platform, The Smovies, which identifies emerging talent in film, and a programme called the Innovation Impact Community, which recognises community leaders.

Dr Amany Asfour is a Faculty of Medicine graduate from Cairo University with an MD in Pediatrics. In her academic career, she is a Lecturer of Pediatrics at the National Research Center of Egypt. She is also the owner of a Medical equipments company, which has over 30 brands. In 1995, Dr Asfour established the Egyptian Business Women Association with the objectives of promoting young generations of women entrepreneurs and guiding female business owners operating SMEs. The organisation promotes women in mainstream global markets. She established the Business & Professional Women (BPW) Cairo, which became affiliated to BPW International, and then mentored the establishment of BPW Giza BPW Pyramids, which then became the Federation of BPW Egypt. Dr Asfour is also elected as the Chair of COMESA Business Council (Common Market for Eastern & Southern Africa) as the first woman to be elected the head of this apex body of the private sector.

Shaloo Garg is an Oracle veteran with deep knowledge and exposure to various spectrums of technology and business units. She joined Oracle in Mergers/Acquisitions, and is now with Global Innovation and Startup Ecosystem at Oracle. She is deeply involved with women and youth in technology, and facilitates the same through a variety of organisations throughout the Silicon Valley. She is a Global Board Advisor to UN Women and believes that technology’s best user case ever is using its power to impact wider social issues in developing or underdeveloped countries. Garg passionately advocates children’s right to an education, and sees great value in the 13 to 18-year-old market in terms of entrepreneurship and innovation.  She holds an MBA with a specialisation in Innovation and Design Thinking from Stanford d.school.

Architect, urban designer, and global activist, Geeta Mehta, is an adjunct professor of architecture and urban design at Columbia University in New York. She has worked on design projects in India, China, Austria, France, Ukraine, Colombia, Brazil, Jamaica, Ghana and Kenya. Geeta has served as the president of the American Institute of Architects’ Japan Chapter while she lived in Tokyo. She currently serves on the board of advisors of Millennium Cities Initiative at the Earth Institute of Columbia University. Geeta is the founder and president of Asia Initiatives (www.asiainitiatives.org), a non-profit organization, committed to supporting projects that “help a woman rise”. She has developed the concept of Social Capital Credits (SoCCs), a breakthrough virtual currency for social good that is currently in use in India, Ghana, Kenya and Costa Rica, incentivising women’s empowerment. She was recognized as one of the 21 Leaders of the 21st Century by Women’s eNews in 2015.

Ma. Victoria “Mavic” Cabrera-Balleza is the Founder, CEO and International Coordinator of the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP). Mavic initiated the Philippine national action planning process of the UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women and Peace and Security (WPS). She also served as an international consultant to the first National Action Plan of Nepal. Mavic has pioneered the Localization of UNSCR 1325 and the 1820 programme regarded as a best practice example and now implemented in 15 countries. She has also led workshops on the integration of WPS resolutions in the training of national police and armed forces to promote gender equality perspectives and respect for international human rights. In 2014, Mavic initiated the establishment of the Girl Ambassadors for Peace, a network of young women and girls in Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia and South Sudan, who are leading peacebuilding and prevention of violent extremism efforts in local communities.

A self-taught champion of all subjects related to entrepreneurship, leadership, family succession, business and marketing, 38-year-old Tatiana Takikawa, is the Sales Director at Agro Assai, a 58-year-old family-owned business based out of Brazil, which distributes agricultural parts and machinery. Facing pressure from employees, suppliers, relatives and friends to take over the company’s board due to her father’s sudden demise just a day after her college graduation, Takikawa took charge of the business. That was the beginning of an amazing journey full of entrepreneurial challenges, a fearless pursuit of dreams, some unexpected outcomes, and many valuable achievements.  She is a member of LIDE Futuro, an entity that leverages the talent of young entrepreneurs.

IlLonka (Javette) Hines is Director, Head of Supply Chain Development, Inclusion and Sustainability at Citi. She leads Citi’s efforts to ensure the consideration and inclusion of diverse firms within Citi’s sourcing practices. Additionally, she is responsible for working across the firm with sourcing and business units to align supplier selection efforts with Citi’s 10-year $100 billion Climate Initiative and their 5-year Sustainability Strategy. Javette has over 20 years of experience in procurement, leadership, diversity, contracts, and management. Prior to joining Citi, she worked at International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) where her responsibilities included recruitment of supply chain talent, management of US and global sourcing activities, globalisation of the supplier diversity programme, strategic planning, and software and technical services sourcing.

Fida founded the award-winning Zaytouneh.com in 2011, and 2014 Atbaki; creating the largest digital recipe platform in Arabic, used by more than 2 million people. She was titled the Ernst & Young Emerging Entrepreneur of 2013 in Jordan, and is Jordan’s Ambassador for Women Entrepreneurship Day (WED) for the years 2015-2017. Taher founded the Women in Business Arabia community in 2017, and is working on a strategic plan to scale the organic community of 30,000 Arab women in business. She aims to institutionalise the project with a mission to increase female participation in the workforce, increase the number of females in senior positions and boards. She serves on the Acting Board of Directors of Nakhweh, and is actively engaged with similar NGOs that aim to empower women. Fida holds a BA in Communication Arts, as well as an Executive Business Leadership certificate from the Harvard Kennedy School.

Elizabeth A. Vazquez is the President, CEO, and Co-Founder of WEConnect International, a corporate led non-profit in Washington DC, USA, that helps to empower female business owners to succeed in global markets. They support and promote women-owned businesses based in 100 countries, including local support in 22, like Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Jamaica, Mexico, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, South Africa, Switzerland, Turkey, and the UK. Ms. Vazquez has co-authored Buying for Impact: How to Buy from Women and Change Our World, and is a member of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment. She sits on the Board of Directors of the Cornerstone Capital Group and Win-Win Strategies, and is a W20 Representative to advance G20 commitments. She also sits on the Walmart Global Women’s Economic Empowerment Initiative’s International Advisory Council and the Chime for Change Girls’ and Women’s Committee

Montaser A. Hiyari has over sixteen years of experience in both academic and applied fields of architecture and urban planning. He is an academic instructor at the Applied Sciences University in Jordan, and also a Regional and Urban Planning Consultant for USAID projects there. He has worked as an urban planning specialist for World Bank, a GIZ funded project, and has experience working in countries like UAE, Iraq, and Yemen. Dr. Hiyari is an Alumni of the International Forum of Democracy and Peace (IFDP), and the American Council of Young Political Leaders. He holds a degree of Doctor Engineer (PhD) from Dortmund Technical University (2012), an MSc in Urban Planning and Studies (2005), and a BSc in Architecture (2001).

S.N. Nyeck holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of California Los Angeles in the USA. Her research focuses on public procurement reform and gender equality. Nyeck is also interested in thinking about how procurement practices could attend to linkages between economic and non-economic needs such as human rights and women's leadership. Dr. Nyeck is the editor of Public Procurement Reform and Governance in Africa (Palgrave-Macmillan, 2016) and of a special journal issue on Women and Government Outsourcing from a Global Perspective (Wagadu, 2015). She has taught as a college professor in the US and is currently a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands and at Canterbury Christ Church University, UK.

Tia is an award-winning entrepreneur. She is the founder and director of Replenish Earth Ltd., Thousand Network Ltd., and Kansara Hackney Ltd. (KH). A partnership with Dr Rod Hackney, KH is the first sustainable lifestyle consultancy in the UK. Her PhD at University College London, Energy Institute is on designing future cities. She has worked alongside personnel from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Masdar. In Abu Dhabi, she was part of a team that worked to create the Gulf’s first energy baseline and comprehensive energy evaluation. In association with the Club of Rome and the United Nations General Assembly, Tia has advised the Royal family of Bhutan, their ex-Prime Minister Jigme Thinley, and current Prime Minister Tsering Tobgay on the creation of an international commission on sustainable, economic growth. During her stint with the Japanese Ministry of Education in 2000, coordinating the teaching of English in high schools in Japan, she translated the Sanskrit works of Lord Swaminarayan’s Shikshapatri into Japanese.

Alexandra Baldeh Loras holds a masters degree in Media Management from the Political Sciences school in France (IEP Paris). Her research interests lie at the intersection of humanitarian affairs, racial biases, feminism, and social inequality. She has delivered keynotes for companies like Google, Facebook, Bloomberg, JP Morgan, and TedxCannes, which are focused on social integration. The co-author of Geniuses of Mankind (DBA Publishing), has lectured on women’s empowerment, interculturalism and diversity, and is the Africa Advisor for the Lula Institute in Brazil. She has appeared on several popular TV talks, and has been featured by major magazines and dailies including The Economist, Vogue, Marie Claire, and Harper’s Bazaar. Alexandra Loras was born in France. She has lived in Germany, England, Spain, Mexico, USA, Sweden and Brazil, and speaks five languages.

Heba began her career with various legal and philanthropy roles in the city of London, and later joined the Orangefield Group (now Vistra) in 2012 as part of their commercial advisory department. In additional to management responsibilities, Heba continues to focus on developing and coordinating relationships as well as providing fiduciary services to a number of subsidiaries of multinational organisations. She has a particular focus on high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) and family offices particularly from the Arabian Gulf in relation to their private and corporate matters.   Heba grew up in the Middle East, and has bilingual expertise in English and Arabic. She holds a degree in Law and has completed the Legal Practice Course at the University of Law, London.