GAWBL.connect – Virtual Meeting Series



 

In cooperation with:

Logo Sanad
 

  • 16 March 2022, 1 - 2pm (CET) Impact Stories: Meet Women Drivers in the Financial Sector: Yasmina El Hosseiny and Stephanie Petrick

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Sarah Hessel, Manager Impact & Sustainability, Finance in Motion
    Speakers:
    - Yasmina El Hosseini, Head of Strategic Planning, Export Development of Egypt
    - Stephanie Petrick, Impact Investing Expert & Senior Advisor Impact Investing, Phineo
  • 26 January 2022, 1 - 3pm (CET) Closing the Gender Gap: Sure, But How To Really Do?

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Sana Bardawil, Co-Chair & Board Member, Arab International Women’s Forum
    Speakers:
    - Eng. Elham Zeadat, CEO, Co-Owner & Founder, CEO BLOOM Dead Sea Gift Enterprises, Jordan
    - Reghina Ribalev, Manager, Finance in Motion
    - Rola El Amine, Innovation Business Manager, Vitas Group
    - Maha Whiteway, Senior Consultant – Transport Advisory, Mott MacDonald
  • 15 December 2021, 1 - 3pm (CET) Women in STEM: Drivers for Innovation

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Dr. Cate Morgan, Research Center Jülich, Coordinator Palestinian-German Science Bridge
    Speakers:
    - Dr. Carola Meyer, Group Leader, Physics Department, University Osnabrück, Deputy Spokesperson Equal Opportunities, German Physical Society
    - Teresa Spanò, Equality Officer, Max-Planck Society
    - Hala Barakat, Director, Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, AUC School of Business
  • 24 November 2021, 1 - 2.3pm (CET) Impact Stories: Meet Womenpreneur-Initiative

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Charlene Wohlsperger, Digital Strategy Lead, Finance in Motion
    Speakers:
    - Sana Afouaiz, Founder & Director, Womenpreneur-Initiative
    - Menna Shahin, Founder She Travels, Co-Founder Tekeya
    - Nisrine El Turky, Founder & CEO of Internet of Trees (IOTrees)
  • 31 March 2021, 1 - 3pm (CET)Shaping post‐COVID‐19: How can the Pandemic be a Catalyst for Progress?

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Kathrin Lemke, Representative, German Industry & Commerce Office, Qatar
    Keynote: HE Brigitte Zypries, Former German Minister for Economy

    Speakers:
    - Prof. Sabine Wölflick, Munich University of Applied Science, Design Thinking Munich, Germany (covering the aspect of training/coaching innovative thinking)
    - Sahana Arun Kumar, Managing Partner, Avrio Impact SAS (covering the aspect of digitalization)
    - Nadine Chehade, Senior Financial Sector Specialist, CGAP
    - Dr. Elham Kateeb, Co-chair for OWSD, Organization of Women in Science in Developing Countries/Palestine Chapter, Dean of Scientific Research, Al‐Quds University
  • 17 March 2021, 1 - 3pm (CET)Women in the Health Sector: Navigating the Pandemic

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Nicole Formica-Schiller, CEO & Founder, Pamanicor Health AG, Switzerland

    Speakers:
    - Dr. Oualae Al Alami, Vice President, Cluster Lead for Egypt, Levant, Iraq and Iran, Pfizer Biopharmaceutical Group, UAE
    - Hanan Saab, Owner Pharmamed, Lebanon
    -Tom Ruyten, Head of Enterprise Service, Market Development Europe, Middle East & Africa, Siemens Healthcare GmbH
    -Yara Abo El Waffa, Healthcare Technical Advisor, Mott MacDonald
  • 17 February 2021, 1 - 3pm (CET)Diversity & Inclusion: Stepping back in times of Corona?

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Carla Everhardt, Attorney at Law, Associate Partner, Roedl & Partner

    Speakers:
    - Katja Ploner, Corporate Diversity & Inclusion Advisor, Siemens AG, Germany
    - Malek Dardour, Cluster Head GCC, Henkel, UAE
    -Ashraf Al Mamari, People Function Leader, OQ, Oman
    -Lisa Kepinski, Founder & Director, Inclusion Institute, Co-Founder & Partner, Inclusion Nudges
    Nancy Samy, Executive Director for Sanabel-The Microfinance Network of Arab Countries
  • 27 January 2021, 1 - 3pm (CET)Financing Women Entrepreneurs During the COVID-19 Pandemic

    Zoom call, only upon invitation, no fee

    Moderator:
    - Iveta Tancheva-Nikolova, Director, Finance in Motion

    Speakers:
    - Yasmina El Hosseiny, Head of Strategic Planning, Export Development Bank of Egypt
    - Tamara Abdel-Jaber, Partner, Amam Ventures
    - Sana Afouaiz, Founder and Director, Womenpreneur Initiative
    - Hiba Mansour, Founder & CEO of Sajilni.com

Virtual Meeting Series

Outline


The pandemic has affected girls and women specifically and disproportionately. Across every sphere, from health to the economy, security to social protection, the impacts of COVID‐19 are exacerbated for women and girls. Women are playing an outsized role responding to COVID‐19, including as frontline healthcare workers, caregivers at home, and as mobilizers in their communities. Women have lost their jobs or seen their employment situation deteriorate while being overstreched due to their precarious employment condition. Women have suffered violence in their homes during confinement. From there, we must remind the importance of not abandoning, but rather reinforcing our commitment to foster equal participation in decision‐making processes, to empower women on all levels and to secure their active role in post‐pandemic times.

*Please mention the session name or date you are interested in, when registering for the virtual session

GAWBL
Established in 2018 our mission is to connect, engage and empower women across Germany, the Arab world and the international community. Building on our shared momentum at the GAWBL‐Summit 2018 and in the light of the current global pandemic, we are delighted to share with you our virtual meeting series in cooperation with SANAD TAF.
COVID-19
The pandemic proves that it is now more important than ever to continue our endeavour to connect women. Resilience, innovation and solidarity are key when adapting to new and unprecedented scenarios. Together we must address the challenges, develop new strategies and strengthen our network. Our commitment is to moving forward, taking this crisis as an opportunity to accelerate our joint efforts in shaping the future together. We are very happy to welcoming our GAWBL network to our new format of virtual exchange.

Session 10: Gender Smart Finance in Action

Achieving gender equity in the financial sector requires intentional, measurable approach with clear accountabilities for progress. In this session, we will hear from financial institutions in Jordan which are well on their way to or have successfully implemented gender strategies, or are at least well on their way. They have taken a variety of steps, such as setting specific and measurable goals, investing in education and awareness programs, diversifying recruitment and hiring practices, and faced a number of challenges along the way.

Discuss with our inspiring fin experts recent studies on how to mainstream gender balance at all levels within financial institutions. Explore key findings that will help identify best practices and strategies for the way forward to capitalize on some behavioural and structural shifts that the past years have presented.

Dr. Gabi Kratochwil

Chairwoman, GAWBL and Owner, CrossCultures, Germany


Gabi brings 25 years of knowledge and working experience as a multi-award winning provider of training, coaching and consultancy with special focus on the Arab World, Diversity Management & Inclusion and Women & Leadership. Owner and Managing Director of CrossCultures, she has an academic background in Middle Eastern Studies and Diversity Management.
For more than 20 years Gabi has been strongly committed to the dialogue and network of German and Arab women leaders, having initiated in 2007 the first Arab-German Businesswomen Dialogue at the Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s annual Arab-German Business Forum, also partnering with the Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF). In 2018 she organized and chaired the first German-Arab Women Business Leaders’ Summit (GAWBL-Summit 2018, www.gawbl-summit.com) held under the Patronage of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in cooperation with Ghorfa with more than 200 high-profile experts, leaders and decision-makers from Germany, Arab countries and the international community. Among its many initiatives, GAWBL has been setting up in 2019 the “Young Women Program”-Study Tour in cooperation with the Qatari Businesswomen Association. A tailor-made study trip for young female leaders from Qatar and Germany that connects and promotes young talent through exchange.
Gabi has been designing and facilitating workshops & events around the world supporting companies, institutions and organizations in implementing a more inclusive corporate culture, setting up diverse teams and working virtually together in a global work environment. She teaches Diversity Management at the University of Freiburg, mentors young female entrepreneurs and coaches individuals on career development, personal goal setting and resilience. Her intercultural business handbook on the Arab World has been ranked No. 5 of the top management books by The Financial Times. Her book on successful women in the Arab World set a milestone.
As a high impact coach and proven expert, she has been advising policy makers, business leaders and companies sharing her expertise and passion for building bridges and connecting people. Gabi has been awarded with the Global Diversity Leadership Award 2017, World Women Leadership Achievement Award 2015 and is a member of the Board of Directors of Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry since 2006 and a member of the Society for Intercultural Training and Research.

Sally Yacoub

Senior Gender and Financial Inclusion Expert, Québec


Sally Yacoub is a multi-cultural professional with more than twenty years of experience. Ms. Yacoub has vast experience in providing technical and strategic advice and leadership on gender equality and financial inclusion. She is proficient at conducting gender-responsive research, gender assessments, gender lens investing analysis, and gendered market/sectoral analysis. She is well versed in designing and delivering training, pragmatic strategies, toolkits, and project interventions that aim to promote gender equality and the inclusion of under-represented groups. Her career spans across regions and areas/sectors such as women’s economic empowerment, entrepreneurship, energy, and youth employment. Ms. Yacoub is providing advisory services to several organizations including SANAD Fund, GIZ Nigeria, FINCA USA, IPC, and Alinea International. Before that, Sally provided gender advisory and consultancy services to the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP), the MicroInsurance Center at Milliman, Deloitte Consulting, Women’s World Banking, and the Centre for Financial Inclusion (CFI) at Accion, among others. Between 2016 and 2019, she also served as a Financial Inclusion and Financial Education Consultant for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region working for the Swiss Capacity Building Facility (SCBF). Before then, she was the Deputy Project Manager and Gender Focal Point for GIZ’s Promotion of Access to Financial Services for SMEs in Egypt (PAFSME) Project as well as a Senior Project Officer, Gender Officer, and Quality Assurance Officer for the Swiss Development Cooperation in Egypt. Ms. Yacoub holds a master’s degree from Ludwigsburg University of Education in Germany whereby her thesis aimed to analyze gender mainstreaming in the United Nations.

Issam George Shnoudeh

Chief Business Officer at Tamweelcom, Amman


Issam Shnoudeh, Tamweelcom’s Chief Business Officer, has extensive experience in the field of Microfinance, Micro and Small Enterprises Financing, financial inclusion and Development spanning 20 years, He has worked in a several positions in Tamweelcom.
Issam has a Bachelor degree in Business Administration in addition to a many professional and international certificates and he is a certified trainer specialized in credit and financial analysis, financial inclusion, portfolio management and social performance management also he was a committee member with the Central Bank of Jordan in formulating the National Financial Inclusion Strategy.

Bdour Alhyari

Director of Strategic Planning and Business Development at Microfund for Women, Amman


Summary
More than 18 years of experience in the development and the financial sectors with various expertise in strategy setting and implementation, change management, business development, research and development, product development and management, quality management, digital transformation, advocacy, social performance management and people management.

Career History
Bdour is the Senior Director of Strategic Planning and Business Development at the Microfund for Women. She is responsible for leading strategic planning and implementation, coordinating the development of the business plans and determining KPIs and milestones to track progress towards achieving the agreed business strategy. She is also responsible for the growth and optimization of organizational and individual performance and growing the bottom line while executing operational improvements and building successful partnerships to drive productivity and enhance organizational value proposition. She excels in dynamic, demanding environments while remaining pragmatic and focused. Bdour also identifies and establishes strong relationships with donors, funding organizations, and other key stakeholders, and building solid pipelines for future business opportunities. She established a strong relationship with the Alttibi with more than one hundred thousand subscribers over three years. She coordinates the design and administration of activities, including facilitating stakeholders’ dialogue with national organizations, bilateral donor agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and development partners (e.g. USAID, UNDP, EU). Bdour was able to secure grants of a value of more than JOD 10 million from different donors to serve different programs and areas. Bdour has seasoned experience in organizational effectiveness and managing change that support and ensure accomplishing business goals by leading, strategizing and implementing key strategies and initiatives in organizational transformation, organizational performance, organizational culture, and talent management initiatives, thereby creating and sustaining a high performing organization.

Education, Certifications and Board Service
MA International Relations | The University of Jordan | Jordan

Natalie Alnaber

Chief Marketing Officer at Bank al Etihad, Amman


Summary
Natalie is the Chief Marketing Officer at Bank al Etihad. With over 15 years of experience, her passion lies in creating purpose-driven brands.

Career History
Natalie joined Bank al Etihad in 2013, a period during which the bank was evolving its business model and experiencing a growth in its client-base. Together with her team, Natalie established Bank al Etihad's social media presence, which today enjoys the highest metrics in the sector in terms of engagement and positive sentiment and was able to increase the bank’s top of mind awareness by 80%, gaining strong media presence across different platforms.

In 2014, Natalie was one of the cross-functional team members tasked with building and launching Bank al Etihad’s women’s market program, Shorouq. Shorouq is the first of its kind in Jordan and has cemented Bank al Etihad's position as the employer and bank of choice for women in Jordan. Natalie is leading the establishment of a sustainability unit at Bank al Etihad, aiming to create long-term stakeholder value through the implementation of practices that focus on the environmental, social, and ethical dimensions of doing business.

Education, Certifications, and Board Service
Currently pursuing MA in Information and Knowledge Management Strategy | Columbia University | NY
BA International Communications and Marketing | Franklin University | Switzerland
Certified Board Director | International Finance Corporate (IFC)
Certified Experience Economy Expert | Strategic Horizons LLP
Board Member | Bank al Etihad Foundation | 2021 - To-Date

Session 9: Gender Smart Finance: Why It Matters

Engaging with gender equity is a must for financial institutions pursuing a responsible investment strategy. According to a McKinsey study, closing the gender labor gap could add $28 trillion, or 26 percent, to annual global GDP in 2025. Gender-balanced boards and management teams in financial institutions will help finance women entrepreneurs, provide women access to decent jobs and build gender-smart products and services that serve women customers across the value chain and with this benefit economies and societies at large.
Discuss with our inspiring fin experts recent studies on how to mainstream gender balance at all levels within financial institutions. Explore key findings that will help identify best practices and strategies for the way forward to capitalize on some behavioural and structural shifts that the past years have presented.

Dr. Gabi Kratochwil

Chairwoman, GAWBL and Owner, CrossCultures, Germany


Gabi brings 25 years of knowledge and working experience as a multi-award winning provider of training, coaching and consultancy with special focus on the Arab World, Diversity Management & Inclusion and Women & Leadership. Owner and Managing Director of CrossCultures, she has an academic background in Middle Eastern Studies and Diversity Management.
For more than 20 years Gabi has been strongly committed to the dialogue and network of German and Arab women leaders, having initiated in 2007 the first Arab-German Businesswomen Dialogue at the Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s annual Arab-German Business Forum, also partnering with the Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF). In 2018 she organized and chaired the first German-Arab Women Business Leaders’ Summit (GAWBL-Summit 2018, www.gawbl-summit.com) held under the Patronage of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in cooperation with Ghorfa with more than 200 high-profile experts, leaders and decision-makers from Germany, Arab countries and the international community. Among its many initiatives, GAWBL has been setting up in 2019 the “Young Women Program”-Study Tour in cooperation with the Qatari Businesswomen Association. A tailor-made study trip for young female leaders from Qatar and Germany that connects and promotes young talent through exchange.
Gabi has been designing and facilitating workshops & events around the world supporting companies, institutions and organizations in implementing a more inclusive corporate culture, setting up diverse teams and working virtually together in a global work environment. She teaches Diversity Management at the University of Freiburg, mentors young female entrepreneurs and coaches individuals on career development, personal goal setting and resilience. Her intercultural business handbook on the Arab World has been ranked No. 5 of the top management books by The Financial Times. Her book on successful women in the Arab World set a milestone.
As a high impact coach and proven expert, she has been advising policy makers, business leaders and companies sharing her expertise and passion for building bridges and connecting people. Gabi has been awarded with the Global Diversity Leadership Award 2017, World Women Leadership Achievement Award 2015 and is a member of the Board of Directors of Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry since 2006 and a member of the Society for Intercultural Training and Research.

Alexander Reviakin

Independent Consultant at Finance in Motion


Alexander (Sasha) is a consultant for Finance in Motion. He has held research, management and consulting roles in public and private organizations in Europe and the Arab world, focused on financial innovation, gender equity and sustainability. Alongside his consultancy work, Alexander runs Rakiza, an NGO focused on financial inclusion and financial literacy in the MENA region, and manages LVPx, an embroidery and up-cycling initiative working with artisans in Lebanon. He holds an honour’s degree in Arabic, International Relations and History of Art from the University of Durham, and speaks proficient French, Spanish, Arabic and Russian.

Emma McGarthy

Head, Sustainable Policy Institute, OMFIF


Emma is Head of the Sustainable Policy Institute. She is responsible for leading and managing the team to deliver the institute’s overall business objectives through a pipeline of reports, journal publications and events. Emma develops the strategy and editorial scope across these projects and supports senior engagement with central banks, regulators, financial services across the sustainable finance space. Prior to joining OMFIF, Emma worked for several years as a conference producer, developing and running international conferences in the tech, legal and finance sectors, leading on content, research and building key industry relationships. Before this, she was a team leader for a local community development project based in Kenya. Emma has a MSc in International Development from the University of Amsterdam, and a BSc in History and American Studies from Sussex University.

Amal Enan

Partner @500 Global, CIO, Sustainable Finance Specialist


...

Minoush Abdelmeguid

CEO, Mezzan, Female Investment Manager focusing on Gender Lens Investments, Cairo


Experienced Managing PArtner with a demonstrated history of working in leading companies in the financial services industry. Skilled in M&A, mid-market Private Equity, Investment Valuation, Investment Advisory, Market Research, and Board level management. Strong business development professional with Executive Diploma in Leadership from Harvard University. Young Global Leader.

Session 8: Impact Stories: Meet Women Drivers in the Financial Sector: Yasmina El Hosseiny and Stephanie Petrick

Learn from inspiring women in the financial sector who are committed to  sensibilizing staff at all managerial levels towards gender issues and equality. Discuss how to successfully boost gender lens finance in support of women’s financial inclusion. Meet our moderator Sarah Hessel (Manager Impact & Sustainability, Finance in Motion) in conversation with Yasmina El Hosseiny (Head of Strategic Planning, Export Development Bank of Egypt) and Stephanie Petrick (Impact Investing Expert & Senior Advisor Impact Investing, Phineo)exploring their expertise in the financial sector, covering the topics of gender policies, gender lens products,, design and implementation as well as impact management.

Dr. Gabi Kratochwil

Chairwoman, GAWBL and Owner, CrossCultures, Germany


Gabi brings 25 years of knowledge and working experience as a multi-award winning provider of training, coaching and consultancy with special focus on the Arab World, Diversity Management & Inclusion and Women & Leadership. Owner and Managing Director of CrossCultures, she has an academic background in Middle Eastern Studies and Diversity Management.
For more than 20 years Gabi has been strongly committed to the dialogue and network of German and Arab women leaders, having initiated in 2007 the first Arab-German Businesswomen Dialogue at the Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s annual Arab-German Business Forum, also partnering with the Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF). In 2018 she organized and chaired the first German-Arab Women Business Leaders’ Summit (GAWBL-Summit 2018, www.gawbl-summit.com) held under the Patronage of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in cooperation with Ghorfa with more than 200 high-profile experts, leaders and decision-makers from Germany, Arab countries and the international community. Among its many initiatives, GAWBL has been setting up in 2019 the “Young Women Program”-Study Tour in cooperation with the Qatari Businesswomen Association. A tailor-made study trip for young female leaders from Qatar and Germany that connects and promotes young talent through exchange.
Gabi has been designing and facilitating workshops & events around the world supporting companies, institutions and organizations in implementing a more inclusive corporate culture, setting up diverse teams and working virtually together in a global work environment. She teaches Diversity Management at the University of Freiburg, mentors young female entrepreneurs and coaches individuals on career development, personal goal setting and resilience. Her intercultural business handbook on the Arab World has been ranked No. 5 of the top management books by The Financial Times. Her book on successful women in the Arab World set a milestone.
As a high impact coach and proven expert, she has been advising policy makers, business leaders and companies sharing her expertise and passion for building bridges and connecting people. Gabi has been awarded with the Global Diversity Leadership Award 2017, World Women Leadership Achievement Award 2015 and is a member of the Board of Directors of Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry since 2006 and a member of the Society for Intercultural Training and Research.

Sarah Hessel

Manager Impact & Sustainability, Finance in Motion


Sarah heads the positive impact management as well as the impact and sustainability disclosures across all funds advised by Finance in Motion, a global impact asset manager. All funds advised by Finance in Motion fall under Article 9 of the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) and pursue clear impact objectives - from climate change mitigation and sustainable use of natural resources, to biodiversity conservation and sustainable economic growth. Prior to joining Finance in Motion, Sarah managed rural development projects for at the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development.

Yasmina El Hosseiny

Head of Strategic Planning, Export Development Bank of Egypt


I have over 20 years’ experience in finance since 1998. I worked in five different financial institutions namely Arab Bank, Blom Bank, Barclays Bank , Attijariwafa bank and recently joined Export Development Bank - EBE. I have diversified experience in the finance industry out of which five years in Retail Banking and twelve years in Corporate Banking. I covered various sectors starting from SMEs, Local Large Corporate, Public Sector and Multinational Corporates while gaining the expertise in different industries in the meantime . Since 2019, I was appointed as Strategic Planning Director at EBE.
I completed my Bachelor Degree with specialization in Economics and Business Administration from the American University in Cairo and graduated with Honors in 1997. in 2013, I completed my MBA degree from Edinburgh Business School ,Heriot-Watt University, UK.
Attended distinguished leadership courses such as I Lead (Barclays in-house course) in 2013 followed by Future Leaders at EBI in 2017.

Stephanie Petrick

Impact Investing Expert & Senior Advisor Impact Investing, Phineo


Stephanie Petrick is seasoned impact investing expert and Senior Advisor Impact Investing at Phineo. She has more than 15 years of experience advising private investors, family offices, investment funds, foundations and international corporations in Europe and the US and led Phineo's impact investing division until 2020.
Previously, Stephanie Petrick worked for the German impact investing pioneer Impact in Motion, for Ashoka Germany and was Principal at L.E.K. Consulting, an international strategy consultancy. She is a graduate of the European School of Business in Reutlingen (D) and the Reims Management School (F) and holds a degree in Foundation Management from the European Business School in Oestrich-Winkel (D).