Middle East And North Africa Businesswomen's Summit

October 29-November 1, 2006

“This is a remarkable time for progress for women. And when women participate fully in their societies, they are better societies, they are more just societies and they are societies that tend to prosper better.”  - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice

Bringing Businesswomen Together

The 2006 Middle East and North Africa Businesswomen’s Summit will bring 250 dynamic women from 17 countries and territories in the region together with women executives from the United States to share business solutions — and to help take business and entrepreneurship in the region to a new level.

At the summit in the United Arab Emirates, October 30- November 1, participants will expand their networks, learn from real-world experiences, explore civic engagement, receive management and leadership training, and plan for economic growth. 

Launching Businesswomen's Hubs

The 2006 summit builds on last year’s summit at which participants set the goal of developing an Arab businesswomen’s network. The network’s mission is to provide ongoing skills training and mentoring and to connect Arab women with experts from the U.S., the Middle East, and North Africa. The Abu Dhabi summit will help launch new businesswomen’s hubs to support the network in Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, the Palestinian territories, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates.

Overcoming Challenges and Identifying Opportunities

Businesswomen in the Middle East and North Africa face the same challenges as businesswomen elsewhere: financing growth, opening new markets, and finding and keeping good employees, all while contributing to their communities and caring for families.

Developing the economies of the Middle East and North Africa is urgent work. An estimated 50 to 65 percent of the population is under age 24, and 100 million new jobs must be created over the next 15 years, just to keep unemployment rates at today’s levels. Reform and development must take place quickly so that people of the Middle East can fulfill their aspirations for greater peace and prosperity.

Supporting Women's Empowerment

The Businesswomen’s Summit is sponsored by the Middle East Partnership Initiative of the U.S. Department of State with the support of the Abu Dhabi Businesswomen Council and the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry. It is presented under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak and managed by the Rady School of Management at the University of California, San Diego.