Business Bureau, Gulf Today

The Dubai Business Women Council (DBWC), the UAE’s leading platform for the personal and professional development of business women revealed the significant growth in the membership database with 277 new members joining in 2019. This reflects the unique diversity of Dubai’s investment environment and the Emirate’s capacity to attract further investors and businesswomen from around the world.

Under the umbrella of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the DBWC always looks into launching quality programmes that will enable businesswomen to unleash their potential and improve their competitive edge in the business community. In 2019, the council organised more than 49 events that showed a 4 per cent increase in the event participants compared to 2018. This reaffirms the importance of the topics raised, which lured businesswomen who seek to benefit from the council’s meaningful activities and develop their skills further.

With 63 nationalities on board as members, DBWC ventured into several successful partnerships that led to hosting 57 workshops, monthly diverse training courses and 3 major forums throughout the year in an attempt to enrich its members’ expertise, taking the grand total of events supported and organised to 106.

During the current year, the Council collaborated with major international companies including Google, Siemens, IE Business School, JPMorgan Chase and many others. This cooperation has been exceptionally effective and has resulted in holding many specialised seminars, which were tailored to cater to the needs of the members.

Among 2019’s milestones were the successful 2nd cycle of the council’s Mentorship Programme, which lasted for six months and successfully concluded with 89 per cent growth in the number of participants compared to 18 participants in the first cycle. The programme paired 34 businesswomen with 34 mentors, who helped them foster their skills, develop their expertise, and assisted them in enhancing their competitiveness within the business community.

One of the highlights of 2019 was the “Inclusion, Innovation, & Sustainability: Businesses of The Future” Forum, which was held in collaboration with the University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) and the United Nations (UN). During that event, the DBWC launched the “Balance for Better” book, which showcases and celebrates various narratives from interviews held with 19 women leaders, and panel discussions that took place as part of the UOWD-DBWC-UN Women and Leadership Research since 2015. The book focuses on exploring how to build a gender-balanced world in the working environment and made a specific reference to UAE and its efforts exerted to highlight the leading role female business leaders can play in support of social and economic development.

The council also engaged in the launch of the UAE Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Committee, a joint initiative of the UN Global Compact and UN Women, which aims to bolster and stimulate gender equality in institutions, marketplace, and community, to reinforce the UAE’s reputation as a gender balanced supportive environment.

Additionally, the President and Board Members took part in a trade visit to Hong Kong in order to partake in the 12th Asian Financial Forum (AFF). The Board also participated in the third edition of the Global Business Forum, GBF Latin America, in Panama. These two events provided the council with a great opportunity to highlight the role that businesswomen play in the UAE, especially in stimulating the economic growth.

Established in 2002, under the umbrella of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dubai Business Women Council is led by its President, Dr. Raja Easa Saleh Al Gurg, a very prominent business woman in Dubai and the region. The Council is a non-profit organisation and is the leading platform for the personal and professional development of working women in Dubai.

The Council celebrated the 15th anniversary of its establishment in 2017. During this time, the Council has dedicated its efforts to enhancing gender equality in society and encouraging women to play an active role in building the country and stimulating sustainable development.

Providing education, training and networking opportunities to aid in achieving holistic development and meeting career aspirations of UAE-based business women (both Emirati and expatriates) is at the heart of the DBWC’s mission, in addition to inspiring and encouraging women to play their role in society and the economy.

DBWC’s tailored workshops and training sessions are hosted exclusively for its members and provide valuable information about the latest knowledge, skills and best practices for women entrepreneurs and leaders. Membership is open to employed business women who live in Dubai, across the UAE and within the region.