The Chicago Booth UAE Alumni Club is delighted to invite you to their Annual Middle East Conference which is being organized in close collaboration and partnership with the Ideation Center, Booz & Company's signature Middle East think tank. The event will be held at the Ritz-Carlton DIFC in Dubai on 16 January 2013, starting at 3:00 PM followed by a networking dinner at 8:00 PM.
Women are among the fastest-growing groups of entrepreneurs today. Despite enormous economic contributions and real success stories, female entrepreneurship remains under-explored and inadequately covered in the MENA region due to cultural norms, barriers of doing business, and relatively low participation of women in entrepreneurial activity. Thus, MENA economies need to understand the challenges specific to women's entrepreneurship, provide a more enabling business environment, and promote entrepreneurship with a particular focus on eliminating gender-specific barriers through policy instruments that are effective in raising entrepreneurship rates among women.
The conference will host a number of prominent experts on entrepreneurship in the MENA region, featuring some of the notable entrepreneurs and pioneers of the female economic empowerment who are making positive changes in the composition and dynamics of the workforce.
Where
Samaya Ballroom
Ritz-Carlton
DIFC
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Event Details
The event will be focused on three key areas, each having a keynote address followed by an interactive panel discussion:
- Creating Awareness about the Third Billion – We will highlight key findings of international and regional research focusing on the Ideation Center's landmark publication The Third Billion.
- Empowering Women Entrepreneurs– We will discuss the first-hand experiences of pioneering female entrepreneurs to shed light on enablers and challenges.
- Carving the Way Forward – We will address current gaps in policy and execution as well as the way forward to empowering women entrepreneurs.
Commitments for speakers and panelists currently include:
- Dr Nasser Saidi – Executive Director - Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance and former Chief Economist of DIFCA
- Sana Bagersh - CEO - BrandMoxie
- Nadereh Chamlou – Senior Advisor, Office of the Chief Economist for the MENA Region - World Bank
- Tarek Sadi - Managing Director - Endeavor - Lebanon
- Dr Karim Sabbagh - Senior Vice President & Chairman - Ideation Center
- Dr Leila Hoteit – Principal - Booz & Co
- Rama Chakaki – Co-Founder - Baraka Ventures
- Ambareen Musa – CEO - Souqalmal.com
- Salam Saadeh – Founder – Active-M
- Tuba Terekli - Co-Founder & CEO - Qotuf Al Riyadah Development Company
- Dr. Abdulaziz Ben Ibrahim Al Hargan - Program Director Bader Program for Tech Incubators - King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology
- Randa AlHamyari – Founder – Break Media
For more information on the speakers please view their bio's online>
A buffet dinner starting at 8PM will allow speakers and attendees to reconnect with old friends, make new acquaintances, and continue the discussion and analysis of this most important topic.
Cost
The cost of the event and dinner is USD $40.
We will not be able to provide any refunds for cancelations after 7 January and any registrations after that date will be at a cost of USD $95.
Registration
Register Online
Registration is open to business school alumni and leading professionals in the Arab world.
Booth has secured a limited number of rooms at the Ritz Carlton for the nights of 15-17 January. To get this special rate, please contact Ana Elena Saenz to reserve your room. You will need to mention you are attending the Booth Event.
Deadline: 1/7/2013
Questions
Contact information below
Other Information
SPONSORS
The Club is proud and grateful for the support and close collaboration of the Ideation Center at Booz & Company, who is the conference Knowledge Partner.
The Club would also like to thank our sponsors for their precious help and contribution.
Strategic Sponsor
Innu-Science
Support Sponsor
Dunia
Emirates Investment Bank
Photographer Christina Fernandes
Media Sponsor
Khaleej Times
The Intelligent SME
Wamda.com
Diversity Sponsor
Microsoft
Inquiries for sponsorship can be directed to John Frédérick van Zuylen, '10
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE
Please feel free to contact any members of the Conference Committee if you have any questions about the event. We look forward to seeing you in January!
Yvonne Chebib, '12 (EXP-17)
J.K. Khalil, '10
John Frédérick van Zuylen, '10
Mark Corusy, '94
Mariam Elsamny, '07