Page 166 - ECI PR REPORT - NOVEMBER 2025

11/4/25, 8:10 AM Inside Forbes Middle East Women’s Summit 2025: Highlights You Don’t Want To Miss
society,” she said. “True empowerment begins when a woman stops imitating someone else’s
success story and trusts her own tools, her intuition, her creativity, her compassion. When she truly

knows herself, her presence becomes her loudest voice.”

Following this inspiring conversation, attention turned to the day’s first panel, where H.E. Dalia
Khorshid, Group CEO and Managing Director of Beltone Holding, emphasized the value of data as

the foundation of future-ready economies. “Data is wealth,” she said. “The more you invest in your

data and analytics, the more progressive and sustainable your returns become. Every data-driven
decision is a step toward long-term prosperity.” Echoing the need for responsibility in

innovation, Dr. Saeeda Jaffar, Senior Vice President and Group Country Manager – GCC, Visa

CEMEA, highlighted, “AI is not optional, it’s already here. Deep fakes, bias, and governance, these
are the three biggest risks we must address in AI. Building trust, ensuring fairness, and putting the

right guardrails in place will define how technology serves us in the future.” For Dr. Noora
AlMarzooqi, Chief Financial Officer of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), AI is a powerful force

that can transform how financial systems operate. improving access to capital, reducing friction for

SMEs, and bringing more underserved businesses into the ecosystem.

The summit shifted focus to women’s leadership in insurance and finance. H.H. Princess Jwaher

Al Saud, Executive Director of Customer Experience at Tawuniya, emphasized the uniquely human
perspective women bring to the sector. Building on this, H.E. Raja Al Mazrouei, CEO of Etihad

Credit Insurance (ECI), said, “Data is a key enabler in strengthening decision-making, and when

women are part of the process, they bring flexibility, creativity, and strategic foresight,”
underscoring how inclusive leadership drives both innovation and resilience.

Continuing the day’s program, leaders explored how to invest in innovation and shape a sustainable

future. Manal AlBayat, Chief Operating Officer at Edamah (Bahrain Real Estate Investment),
highlighted the operational side of innovation: “Innovation is about streamlining governance,

digitizing operations and processes, and empowering teams to act with speed and accountability.”
Adding to this perspective, Nejoud Almulaik, General Manager at Fitch Ratings, emphasized the

balance of risk and reward in driving investor confidence: “Government participation, particularly

in early-stage innovation, is critical — partnering in funds and taking calculated risks fosters
entrepreneurship and drives investor confidence.” Adding a complementary perspective, Adwa

Aldakheel, Founder & CEO of Falak Investment Hub, said, “Financial sustainability requires

attention to both supply and demand, the supply being startups, founders, innovators, and university
IP, and the demand being investors who understand the high-risk, high-reward nature of early-stage

ventures.”

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