The Arab International Women's Forum (AIWF) held its 9th successful young women leaders conference with the support of PepsiCo and PWC

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ARAB INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S FORUM
NEWS RELEASE
[For immediate release]
AIWF holds successful 9th Young
Arab Women Leaders conference in
Fez, Morocco in April 2017 with the
valued support of PepsiCo and PwC
24 April 2017 – London, United Kingdom - Following on from the success
of the Young Arab Women Leaders: The Voice of the Future conferences
in Amman, Beirut and Dubai in 2012, Palestine in 2013, London in 2011 and
2014, Doha in 2015, and Kuwait in 2016, the Arab International Women’s
Forum (AIWF) was proud to host the ninth conference of the series in Fez,
Morocco on 18 April 2017 in partnership with PepsiCo and PwC, and with the
support of MEC Maghreb Invest and local co-organiser AOB Group.
Close to 200 delegates from the Arab world and internationally attended this
highly successful conference, AIWF’s first ever event in Morocco, and the 9th
event in this series designed by AIWF in partnership with PwC to nurture the
next generation of young women entrepreneurs, helping to empower them as
they aspire to leadership roles in business and in public life.
The 9th Young Arab Women Leaders conference in Morocco aimed to
recognise and celebrate the contribution of Moroccan business women whilst
inspiring the next generation of young women leaders to contribute to the
development of the national economy and to MENA long-term economic
growth. The objective of the Young Arab Women Leaders programme was to
support and nurture young women entrepreneurs, community leaders and
change agents in the Arab world, and to engage in dialogue and debate on
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2. challenges and opportunities for young women in leadership roles, on
corporate boards, in social enterprise and tech innovation, and in the energy,
finance, law and STEM sectors. The programme brought high caliber
speakers from government, business and civil society organisations together
with talented, driven young women who aspire to community, business and
political leadership.
The 9th Young Arab Women Leaders conference was addressed by Guest of
Honour Speakers Dr Assia Alaoui, Ambassador at Large, Kingdom of
Morocco, and Dr Soundouss Bouhia, Senior Officer, Royal Cabinet,
Kingdom of Morocco; and by distinguished Moroccan women leaders
including:
▪ Asmaa Morine Azzouzi, President, AFEM Association of Women
Entrepreneurs
▪ Lamia Bazir, Entrepreneur & President, Alumni Association at Al
Akhawayn University
▪ Fatim-Zahra Biaz, Founder & Director, New Work Lab
▪ Fedwa Bouzoubaa, Business Lawyer
▪ Soraya Bedrouai, CEO Lavazza Morocco
▪ Yasmine Benamour, CEO, HEM Business School
▪ Nada Biaz, Director General, ISCAE Business School
▪ Sophia Charaï, Architect & Musician
▪ Mahat Chraibi, Partner, Tax & Legal Leader, PwC Morocco
▪ Fatim-Zahra Biaz, Founder & Director New Work Lab
▪ Nada Biaz, Director General, ISCAE Business School
▪ Manal Elattir, Founder, Asila
▪ Dr Wafa El Garah, Vice President for Academic Affairs, AUI & Project
Manager, AUI Centre for Business Ethics
▪ Ghizlane El Manjra, Founder, Les Frères Gourmet
▪ Hind Ait El Mouden, Founder, Young Professionals Institute
▪ Khadija Idrissi Janati, Entrepreneur, Political and Women’s
Empowerment Activist, and Managing Director KMK Group
▪ Najia Kabbaj, President, Yassamine
▪ Kenza Lahlou, Founder & Managing Director, Start Up Your Life
▪ Lamia Merzouki, Deputy General Manager, Casablanca Finance City;
and
▪ Selma Zerhouni, Architect & Founder, AM Editions.
Distinguished speakers coming from across the GCC, MENA and
internationally included Sheikha Alanoud Hamad Al Thani, Vice President of
Strategic Alliances at the CEO Office, Qatar Financial Centre Authority
(Qatar); Najwa Attiga, General Counsel, Emirates Investment Authority
(UAE); Soraya Alem, Business Unit Head, Janssen Pharmaceutical
Company of Johnson & Johnson (Alger); Jane Ellis, Director, Legal Policy &
Research Unit, International Bar Association (UK); Bianca Drebber, Portfolio
Officer, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis & Malaria (Switzerland);
Heba Khairallah Al Emara, Head of Relations EMEA, Vistra (UK); Dr Ghada
Howaidy, Executive Director, Office of Strategic Alignment, American
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3. University of Cairo Business School, Egypt; Nouzha Lahrizi, Senior
Consultant, Corporate Finance & Strategy, MEC International Ltd (UK);
Sophie Le Ray, CEO & Co-Founder, Naseba (UAE); and Jane Pearce,
Managing Director, Vistra Jersey (UK).
The Young Arab Women Leaders conference was moderated by Deborah
MacArthur, a Morocco-based American entrepreneur and retired corporate
executive with over 30 years of experience coaching youth for employment,
entrepreneurialism and leading multinational change programs across the US,
Middle East and North Africa, and current Award Executive in Residence at
BMCE Bank of Africa, leading its $1M African Entrepreneurship Award which
selects, mentors and grants $1M USD a year to entrepreneurs across Africa.
AIWF was proud to continue its longstanding collaboration with Conference
Partner PwC and to welcome PepsiCo as a Conference Partner of the 9th
edition of the Young Arab Women Leaders initiative, which was chaired by
Rania Rizk, Acting Chairman of AIWF and Senior Vice President & General
Counsel, PepsiCo AMEA, UAE. Rania Rizk was appointed Acting Chairman of
AIWF in January 2017 when it was announced that Haifa Fahoum Al
Kaylani, Founder Chairman of AIWF, would become a Fellow of Harvard
University’s Advanced Leadership Initiative for 2017.
The agenda and format of the Young Arab Women Leaders Conference were
highly interactive and discussion-based, with valuable experiences shared
and key recommendations made by panellists in every session that AIWF
shall follow up on in future programmes and initiatives in collaboration with
AIWF Global Partners.
AIWF was proud to welcome on this special occasion AIWF Global Partners
including PepsiCo, PwC, Shell, Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of
Johnson & Johnson, Vistra Services and Memac Ogilvy. The Conference
Programme concluded on the evening of 18 April 2017 with an Official Gala
Dinner at the Marriott Jnan Palace Hotel in Fez, that brought together AIWF
Global Partners, Distinguished Guest Speakers, Delegates and all Valued
Partners.
The 10th Young Arab Women Leaders Conference will be announced by AIWF
in the near future, as part of the AIWF 2017 Annual Programme. For more
information on the Young Arab Women’s Leaders initiative, please visit
www.aiwfonline.com.
– ENDS –
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4. About the Arab International Women’s Forum
The Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF) is a non-profit development
organisation that has members and contacts in more than 45 countries and
links Arab business leaders with each other and their counterparts in the
international community to exchange knowledge, experience and develop
their business potential.
AIWF has been an agent for change for women in the Arab region
encouraging their potential and has received international recognition in the
Arab world and internationally as a powerful advocate for women in business
and their empowerment. International conferences have been held in London,
Paris, Dubai, Doha, Damascus, Washington DC, Madrid, Brussels, Sharjah,
Cairo, Amman, Beirut, Palestine, Kuwait and Morocco, examining strategies
for job creation, inclusive sustainable growth, economic competitiveness,
development of human capital, increased innovation and collaboration
through public-private partnership.
Please visit www.aiwfonline.com for media resources and past papers, or
contact:
Arab International Women’s Forum
Berkeley Square House, Berkeley Square, London W1J 6BD
Telephone: +44 20 7887 7630 | Fax: +44 20 7887 6001
Email: info@aiwfonline.com | Website: http://www.aiwfonline.com
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