Influential Emiratis have made their presence known in Forbes' 2020 list of the 100 Power Businesswomen in the Middle East.
The 2020 list included 23 nationalities from countries across the Arab world; not all those included in the list are of Arab origin, rather all businesswomen who have made an impact in the Middle East. Among the 100 candidates, an Emirati businesswoman prevailed as the region's most powerful. Raja Easa Al Gurg, the managing director and vice-chairperson of the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group (one of the region's biggest conglomerates), ranked No.1 on the list.
Generally, Emirati women dominated the list, with 22 women from the UAE scoring a spot in the ranking. Two of those women ranked in the top 10. There are UAE-based women who made it onto the list as well.
Who are the Emiratis who made it on the list?
Below is the list of Emirati women who made it to Forbes' 2020 list. Their overall place in the ranking can be found in between parenthesis.
- Raja Easa Al Gurg (No. 1)
Managing Director of Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group - Aisha Bin Bishr (No. 10)
Director-General of Smart Dubai - Suzanne Al Anani (No. 15)
CEO of Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects - Dalya Al Muthanna (No. 17)
President & CEO of GE Gulf - Huda Al Rostamani (No. 18)
CEO of AW Rostamani Group - Maryam Eid AlMheiri (No. 19)
CEO of Media Zone Authority, twofour54 - Majida Ali Rashid (No. 25)
CEO of Dubai Land Department - Rola Abu Manneh (No. 27)
CEO of Standard Chartered Bank - Maitha Al Dossari (No. 35)
CEO of Emaar Properties - Amina Taher (No. 42)
Vice President of Etihad Aviation Group - Najla Ahmed Al Midfa (No. 46)
CEO of Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center - Maryam Al Suwaidi (No. 47)
Deputy CEO of Securities & Commodities Authority
Emirati women (cont.)
- Hana Al Rostamani (No. 49)
Group Head of Personal Banking at First Abu Dhabi Bank
- Amna Al Owais (No. 59)
Chief Registrar at DIFC Courts
- Maryam Mohamed Fekri (No. 63)
COO of Dubai Financial Markets - Raja Al Mazrouei (No. 67)
Executive Vice President of FinTech Hive - Zainab Mohammed (No. 70)
Chief Property Management and Marketing Officer of wasl Asset Management Group - Nadia Zaal (No. 73)
Founder and CEO of Zaya - Nashwa Al Ruwaini (No. 74)
CEO of Pyramedia Group - Shaikha Al Nowais (No. 78)
Corporate Vice President of Rotana Hotel Management Corporation - Maryam Bahlooq (No. 82)
CEO of Tanfeeth - Elissa Freiha (No. 89)
Founder of Womena - Noor Sweid (No. 93)
General Partner at Global Ventures
Emiratis weren't the only women to occupy a little more than five spots in the list. The ranking also included nine Egyptians, eight Lebanese, and eight Omani women. The list also saw other Arab nationalities including Saudi, Bahraini, Jordanian, and Algerian to name a few.
Among the non-Arabs in the list, British women have the highest representation.
The top 10 in the list was predominately Saudi; three Saudi women took spots in the top 5 including Samba Financial Group's Rania Nashar, Tadawul's Sarah Al Suhaimi, and Saudi British Bank's Lubna Olayan.
Iraqi-American businesswoman Huda Kattan, the founder of Huda Beauty, also made it on the list, ranking 28th in the overall ranking.