About
She’s Next Grant Competition is a global endeavor to spotlight women in business. It has been specifically designed to help women entrepreneurs and small business owners secure the funding they need to survive and thrive, while also empowering them with coaching, peer-to-peer connections, and inspiration. Forbes Middle East in collaboration with Visa is hosting “She’s next: Spotlighting Women Entrepreneurs in the Middle East” to shed light on the growing importance of shifting the mindset of “It’s a man’s world” in this region targeting the UAE, KSA, Egypt, and Morocco.
This event will harness powerful female business leaders and entrepreneurs to discuss the challenges faced and how to overcome the barriers hindering growth. The event will also feature insights on how to enhance business management skills, coaching female entrepreneurs while creating an awareness of Visa’s grants and programs to launch and develop SMEs. Between each session, we will have an open mic with the top 2 winners from each of the 4 markets to give them the opportunity to share their business stories in the form of an elevator pitch.
Before we kick-start the series of insightful talks and discussions on the day, the MC will give a quick shout-out to celebrate the 5 winners in each market acquiring $10,000 prize fund each and 1-year IFW mentorship program.
Join us in this exclusive event to find out the key strategies for women empowerment and thus achieving gender equality. “It’s time people started seeing that being a woman in business is a strength, not a weakness.”
Speakers

speaker
Azza Fahmy
Chairwoman & Creative Director
Azza Fahmy Jewellery

speaker
Ambareen Musa
CEO
Souqalmal.com

speaker
Asmae Hajjami
Managing Director
Société Générale Maroc

speaker
Elissa Freiha
Founder and CEO
Womena

speaker
Hany El-Dieb
Head of Business Banking Segments, Products & Credit Relations Management
CIB

speaker
Karen Wazen
Owner
Karen Wazen

speaker
Leslie Reed
Mission Director
USAID-Egypt

speaker
Madiha Sattar
Vice President
Careem Pay

speaker
Mirna Arif
General Manager-Egypt
Microsoft

speaker
Nadine Halabi
Business Development Manager
Dubai Business Women Council

speaker
Mona Ataya
CEO and Founder Mumzworld.com
Mumzworld

speaker
Sara Al Binali
Group Head of Corporate and Commercial Banking
First Abu Dhabi Bank

speaker
Zahra Lari
CEO & Co-Founder
Emirates Skating Club
Moderators

moderator
Dr. Saeeda Jaffar
Senior Vice President & Group Country Manager – GCC
Visa

moderator
Ramia Farrage
Senior Presenter / Producer
Forbes Middle East

moderator
Leila Serhan
Group Country Manager and Senior Vice President for NALP
Visa
10:00 – 10:10 am
Welcome & Opening Remarks by Forbes ME
Khuloud Al Omian, CEO, Forbes Middle East
10:10 – 10:25 am
Keynote: 7 Lessons on Success from a Woman Entrepreneurs in the Middle East
A powerful keynote from an influential woman from the ME to discuss how she overcame challenges and stereotypes to become a role model and a successful business leader.
Ambareen Musa, CEO, Souqalmal.com
10:25 – 10:35 am
Open mic: Winners flash talk and presentations: UAE
10:35-11:05 am
Fireside chat | A Roadmap to Greatness – How to Develop a Strategy for Your Business
Successful women entrepreneurs define a business goal and develop a viable market strategy as part of the planning process. Join this discussion to learn how to build a lucrative business and assess opportunities as well as threats involved to be profitable in a dynamic consumer market.
Madiha Sattar, Vice President, Careem Pay
Mona Ataya, Founder/CEO, Mumzworld
Karen Wazen, Owner, Karen Wazen
Moderator: Dr. Saeeda Jaffar, Senior Vice President & Group Country Manager – GCC, Visa
11:05– 11:15 am
Open mic: Winners flash talk and presentations: Morocco
11:15 – 11:45 am
Panel Session: Are There Certain Traits That Women Need To Have To Be Successful?
Women lead differently than men; qualities such as being holistic, collaborative, inclusive, and consultative are strengths that is required to succeed in a global economy. Let’s examine the traits women need to possess for their business to not only capitalize on today’s climate of disruption, but also be the disruptors themselves.
Azza Fahmy, Chairwoman & Creative Director, Azza Fahmy Jewellery
Asmae Hajjami, CEO, Societe General Maroc
Mirna Arif, General Manager-Egypt, Microsoft
Hany El-Dieb, Head of Business Banking Segments and Products & Credit Relations Management, CIB
Moderator: Leila Serhan , Group Country Manager, NALP, Visa
11:45 – 11:55 am
Open mic: Winners flash talk and presentations: KSA
11:55 – 12:15 am
Fireside Chat: The Rising Phoenix – Tackling Cyberbullies in A Connected and Reactive Digital World
A fireside chat with a fiery influencer to highlight the issues faced by individuals & businesses in the cyber world. We will explore the paths one must avoid and the measures that should be taken to tackle cyberbullying.
Zahra Lari, Business Development Manager,Emirates Skating Club
Moderator: Ramia Farrage ,Presenter, Forbes Middle East
12:15 – 12: 25 pm
Open mic: Winners flash talk and presentations: Egypt
12:25 – 1:05 pm
Enabling Access to Peer Networks and Capital
Join us as we discuss approaches to facilitate new peer networks and social capital. The challenges and chances one has to form a peer network, which in turn aids in developing resilience and the capacity to constructively respond to risk or adversity.
Nadine Halabi, Business Development Manager, Dubai Business Women Council
Leslie Reed, Mission Director, USAID-Egypt
Sara Al Binali, Group head of Corporate & Commercial Banking, First AbuDhabi Bank
Elissa Freiha, Founder and CEO, Womena
Moderator: Ramia Farrage , Presenter, Forbes Middle East
1:05 – 1:15 pm
Closing Remarks by Forbes
Khuloud Al Omian, CEO, Forbes Middle East
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About Forbes Middle East

Forbes Middle East is a licensee of Forbes Media and extends the Forbes brand of journalism across the Arab world. Forbes Middle East’s distinctive editorial style attracts a readership of Arab leaders, entrepreneurs, C-level executives, government officials and investors united by a belief in the spirit of free enterprise and entrepreneurial values.Across the region, Forbes Middle East sets the pace for preemptive business journalism. By uncovering trends and anticipating opportunities in the regional marketplace, each monthly issue brings top executives the information critical to their success – in both Arabic and English language editions. The magazine researches and publishes original rankings, based on methodologies set by Forbes Media.
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