
Event description
On December 12 the Atlantic Council’s WIn Fellowship hosted an event at the 2024 edition of Abu Dhabi Finance Week on the role of women in finance titled “Women in finance: Investment frameworks and applicability to the MENA region.”
Over the past decade, the MENA region has experienced impressive economic growth, fueled by ambitious national visions and reforms prioritizing economic diversification. Initiatives like Vision 2030 in Saudi Arabia and We the UAE 2031 have helped shift economies away from hydrocarbon reliance, creating space for new industries such as technology, tourism, clean energy, and entrepreneurship.
The event examined how strategic regulatory frameworks and investment incentives, particularly in the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC), transformed the regional investment landscape. With sovereign wealth funds ranking among the top globally and a rapid expansion of venture capital focused on early-stage startups, the MENA is quickly becoming a hub for tech-driven entrepreneurship. However, questions persist on whether the current Silicon Valley-style, high-risk, high-reward investment model can sustain the region’s long-term goals.
The event featured industry leaders, policy experts, and investors to discuss new investment models for the MENA region that match its evolving economic ambitions.
Speakers
Agenda
Times below are in UAE time
2:00 p.m. – 2:05 p.m. | Opening remarks
Emilia Pierce, Deputy Director, Middle East Programs, Atlantic Council
2:05 p.m. – 2:20 p.m. | Keynote speaker
Ambassador Martina Strong, US Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates
Dr. Alyazia Ali Saleh Al Kuwaiti, Executive Director – UAE Industries, UAE Investments Platform, Mubadala
2:20 p.m. – 3:05 p.m. | Women’s Leadership in Global Finance: Driving Impact in Emerging Markets
Amnah Ajmel, Executive Vice President, Market Development, EEMEA, Mastercard
Rania Fathallah, Managing Director – Private Credit, Franklin Templeton
Caroline Faraj, Editor-in-Chief of CNN Arabic & Vice President, CNN (moderator)
3:20 p.m. – 4:05 p.m. | Does the MENA region need a new investment model? Panel I: Investors’ perspective
Madiha Sattar, Managing Director & Growth Ventures Partner, BNY
May Nasrallah, Executive Chairwoman & Partner, PJT deNovo & PJT Partners
Courtney Powell, Chief Operating Officer & Managing Partner, 500 Global
Abeer Abu Omar, Government & Economics Reporter, Bloomberg (moderator)
4:10 p.m. – 4:55 p.m. | Does the MENA region need a new investment model? Panel II: Entrepreneurs’ perspective
Ola Doudin, Co-Founder & CEO, BitOasis
Nadine Mezher, Co-Founder, Sarwa
Nour Al Hassan, CEO & Founder, Tarjama & Ureed
Caroline Faraj, Editor-in-Chief of CNN Arabic & Vice President, CNN (moderator)
4:55 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Concluding & closing remarks
Emilia Pierce, Deputy Director, Middle East Programs, Atlantic Council
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