VIEW THE 2022 SPEAKERS

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His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama has been appointed as Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence in October 2017, and then was appointed as Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications in July 2020.

His responsibilities include enhancing the government performance levels by investing in the latest technologies and tools of artificial intelligence and applying them in various sectors.

His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama is Spearheading UAE efforts to be positioned as a global leader in Digital economy, With the focus to enhance UAEs digital economy contribution to the GDP.  

His Excellency is also focused on strengthening the UAE’s position as a global reference in remote work applications.

His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama is currently the Managing Director of the World Government Summit. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of Dubai Future Foundation and Deputy Managing Director of the Foundation. He is also Chairman of Dubai Chamber of Digital economy.  

In November 2017, the UAE government announced selecting HE. Omar Al Olama as a member of the Future of Digital Economy and Society Council at the World Economic Forum.  

During his work in the Future Department at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs and the Future, His Excellency participated in developing the UAE Centennial 2071 strategy that aims to position the UAE as the best country in the world. He also participated in developing the UAE 4th Industrial Revolution Strategy that aims to promote the UAE’s status as a global hub for the 4th Industrial Revolution and develop a national economy based on knowledge, innovation and future technologies. Prior to his appointment, His Excellency worked on developing the UAE’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy, making it the first such strategy of its kind globally.

His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama worked in several sectors including the banking sector, telecommunications, private enterprises and government. H.E. also worked on developing and executing strategies, risk analysis, change management and scenario planning.

His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama holds a Diploma in Project Management and Excellence from the American University of Sharjah and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the American University of Dubai.

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As CEO for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Latin America (LATAM), Helmut is responsible for all go-to-market functions across EMEA and LATAM. Prior to joining Palo Alto Networks in 2022, Helmut was CEO of Orange Business Services (OBS), leading its global organization of 28,000 employees and supporting the digital transformation of enterprise customers around the world. Prior to OBS, Helmut held leadership positions across Europe at Avaya Inc., NextiraOne Germany and Alcatel Austria.

Helmut holds a Ph.D. from Vienna University for Economics and Business (WU), and speaks English, French, German and Spanish.

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Mariam Bin Al Shaikh, Director of Sharjah Business Women Council leads formulating strategic plans for SBWC, and plays a critical role in determining new opportunities for the council and steering the team towards achieving its mission and vision.   Al Shaikh’s talent and application were rewarded with a membership to the Sharjah Consultative Council in 2019. As member of the Financial, Economic and Industrial Affairs Committee, she is part of an elite team of professionals who advise on public policies, laws and legislation as well as services and public utilities.   Al Shaikh holds a Bachelors’ degree in International Studies from the American University of Sharjah. She is also a graduate of the Sharjah Leadership Programme and has attended several management and leadership programmes conducted by leading international universities.   Apart from her profession, Al Shaikh is passionate about social work, having been a Board Member of the social organisation 1971 Team since 2014, She helps organise social charity events such as ‘Ela Jary’ and ‘Food Drive’ and coordinates with the Ministry of Youth and Ministry of Happiness throughout the year on initiatives to help the underprivileged.

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Najla Ahmed Al-Midfa is the Chief Executive Officer of the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa), a government-supported entity launched in 2016, with a mandate to build the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Sharjah, and support entrepreneurs as they build and grow innovative startups that will contribute positively to the region’s economy. To date, Sheraa has built a portfolio of over 122 startups, which have raised around $128m in investment, created over 1400 jobs, and generated over $187m in cumulative revenue. Sheraa also hosts the annual Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival (SEF), which has drawn participation from 300 high-level speakers and over 13,000 attendees from around the world. Prior to Sheraa, Najla held a senior position at Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, focused on SME financing, and was a consultant at McKinsey and Company’s New York office, primarily serving clients across the financial institutions sector. Her previous professional experience also includes roles within PricewaterhouseCoopers and Shell. Najla is a member of the Board of Directors at United Arab Bank, Emirates Development Bank, and Dana Gas. She was previously on the board of the Emirates Schools Establishment. Najla is Vice-Chairperson of Young Arab Leaders, and a board member of Endeavor UAE. She is a fellow of the Aspen Institute’s Middle East Leadership Initiative, as well as an Eisenhower Global Fellow. Najla holds an MBA from Stanford University.

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Heba is a certified project management specialist (PMP Certified) with 18+ years of experience leading Global, Regional and Local Technology & Digital Transformation Programs across different industries; mainly Retail, Public Sector, Pharmaceutical, Oil & Gas and Banking.

Currently located in the UAE, leading the Technology Project Management Office at Majid Al Futtaim as the Planning & Portfolio Management Director. Heba has worked on several projects and programs as a system analyst covering different industries in several countries. Her exposure to different cultures, technologies and businesses sparked her interest to specialize in managing technology projects and programs.

Since 2007, Heba has focused on managing technology programs and projects across different platforms [Microsoft, SAP, Oracle and Service Now] and she progressed to setting up project management offices across different organizations, whether for IT service providers, governments, pharmaceuticals and now at Majid Al Futtaim; one of the largest lifestyle conglomerates in the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia.

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Hans holds a BA, MBA and is studying for his PhD. For 10 years he’s been contributing to building the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Dubai, creating the largest tech hub in MENA, with 1000+ start-ups from 75 nations, attracting 1$billion+ in FDI, specialising on incubation, acceleration, venture capital investment, corporate innovation and knowledge. Previously, Hans founded 3 start-ups, raising $10m+ from renowned VCs, and pioneered corporate incubation in Europe.  

10 years building Dubai’s entrepreneurial ecosystem creating the largest tech hub in MENA,1000+ start-ups, attracting $1B+ in FDI. Specialises in incubation, acceleration, VC, corporate innovation. Previously, founded 3 start-ups, raising $10m+ and pioneered corporate incubation in Europe. 

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Hema is an engineer, turned entrepreneur, turned investor. Hema is a founding partner at Five35 Ventures, a pan-African VC fund investing in women in tech. She is also the co-founder & CEO of WomHub, a boutique pan-African incubator and the first co-working space for female-founders in STEM in Africa. WomHub is a spin-out of her global, award-winning non-profit WomEng which provides interventions for girls and women at every stage of the engineering skills pipeline. Over the past 15 years Hema has built the full ecosystem of interventions supporting women in STEM from talent pipelining, venture building, incubation, acceleration through to investment.

Hema has a diverse and unique set of skills ranging from being a trained engineer, having practiced locally and abroad; to being a social entrepreneur, leading and growing a global social enterprise; as well as being a certified ontological coach and a noted international speaker and facilitator. She is an avid gender advocate and also serves as a diversity & inclusion specialist, providing advisory and informing policy at various levels. Hema has recently completed her Executive MBA at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. Hema is also an angel investor with Dazzle Angels, a female-focused angel fund in South Africa.

Her passion for the work she does has resulted in a number of accolades in recognition of her leadership. These include being awarded the South Africa’s Most Influential Woman in Engineering title, branded as a “Change-Maker” by Oprah Magazine, named as one of the Top 200 Young South African’s by Mail & Guardian and being selected for the Fortune Global Women’s Mentorship Exchange. She is a Vital Voices Global Leader and a member of the African Leadership Network, a community of dynamic and influential leaders in Africa. She has been named as a finalist for the CEO Most Influential Woman in Africa Awards and Trust Women Hero Award. She been named as one of South Africa’s Inspiring Fifty Women in Tech, a fellow of prestigious Archbishop Tutu Leadership Fellowship, and winner of the Fortune/Goldman Sachs Global Women Leader’s Award. Hema is a scholarship holder of the SoGal Diversity Scholarship for the VC Unlocked programme run by Stanford and 500 Start-ups. Hema is also board member of Ping Lady and ALA Student Enterprise Program. However, it is not these accolades that define her, but rather the impact that she has through her work.

CTF: Engineer, entrepreneur, investor. Oxford University Saïd Business School EMBA graduate. Fortune/Goldman Sachs Global Women Leader’s Award, South Africa’s Most Influential Woman in Engineering, named a “change maker” by Oprah Magazine & part of Fortune Global Women’s Mentorship Exchange.

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I am an ENTREPRENEUR with a background of Electronics Engineering and Firmware development and a demonstrated history of working in smart metering and IoT industries. As a Business Development STRATEGIST, I have valuable experiences in Water and Energy Resource Management, Health, 3D printing and ICT industries. Finally I became a VENTURE CAPITALIST, since I was interested in emerging Technologies.

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Hussein Mohammed Al Meeza is an acclaimed award-winning banker with over 45 years of experience spanning the Islamic banking, finance and insurance sectors. A founding member of Emaar properties, Amlak Finance, Emaar Industries & Investments, Emaar Financial services, Dubai Islamic Insurance & Reinsurance Company (AMAN), Nawat, he was named Best Islamic Banking Personality in 2006. His professional career began in 1975 at the Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB), where he spent over 20 years developing the bank’s services, and still serves as Executive Director.

As an emerging star of Islamic banking, he is the founder of Al Salam Banks in Sudan, Bahrain and Algeria, where he serves on various positions including Board Member, Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Executive Committee since 2015. He is also the Chairman of Al Salam Bank - Seychelles, Chairman of Top Enterprises L.L.C., Chairman of Lycée Francais Jean Mermoz L.L.C. Hussein Al Meeza excelled as CEO and Managing Director of Dubai Islamic Insurance and Reinsurance Company (AMAN), Chairman of LMC Bahrain, Chairman of the Executive Committee of Islamic Trading company in Bahrain, Board Member and Chairman of the Executive Committee in Amlak Finance Dubai and Chairman of Emaar Financial Services Dubai, Vice Chairman of Emirates Cooperative Society Dubai. He also served as Board Member of the General Council of Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions, Chairman of the Founding Committee of Islamic Insurance and Reinsurance Companies. He also held the position of Board Member of the Emirates Society for Insurance. Mr Al Meeza served as Chairman at Nawat Investments and Amity Health in Dubai, as well as Board Member of Al Salam Bank Bahrain and Chairman at Al Salam Bank Seychelles. Hussein Al Meeza is a graduate of the Beirut Arab University and holds an MBA degree from La Jolla University, USA.

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