Category: Invited guests

Country Head for BNP Paribas for the United Arab Emirates since 1st of October 2021. He also serves as Multinational Clients Coverage Coordinator for the Middle East region. As a seasoned professional, François has over 30 years of strong and diversified experience with BNP Paribas. He spent 10 years in Paris at the start of his career, both in Inspection Générale and then Coverage in a Banker role. From 2000 onwards, he held several senior executive roles in London and Central & Eastern Europe. He was Country Head for BNP Paribas in Hungary from 2005 until 2009, and then Country Head in Russia from 2012 until 2015. In London, he led the Acquisition Finance team in the early 2000’s and served as Head of Human Resources at the time of the BNP Paribas and Fortis merger. He was also Chief Operations Officer for BNP Paribas London Branch. Before coming to the UAE, he served as BNP Paribas’ Chief Compliance Officer, UK. Francois graduated in France as an Engineer from Ecole Nationale Superieure d’Arts et Metiers and he holds an MBA from EM Lyon.

Swedish Ambassador for Global Health at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm. Medical doctor from the Karolinska Institute. He worked for WHO as the Assistant Director General for General Management, Health Systems and Services and as Acting Director-General 2003-2008 and as the Head of the WHO Country Office in Sierra Leone 2015-17. He has served as Director-General for the Swedish International Agency for Development Cooperation (Sida). As the Interim Executive Director, he established the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as a legal entity 2002. Recently he headed the secretariat for the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response. He has served as board member of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, GAVI, UNAIDS and PMNCH. He is currently a member of the Alliance for Health Systems Research’s board, the Chatham House Commission for Universal Health, the International Vaccine Institute Global Advisory Group of Expert and the Virchow Foundation for Global Health Council.

Junior Environmental Policy Analyst at the OECD. He is a young leader in resource and environmental policy who has been working on these policy issues for over 10 years. For the past 2 years he has worked for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), primarily on issues relating to resource productivity and waste management, with a strong focus on resource efficiency and the circular economy. In this capacity he has been an author of five recently published research papers, including the OECD’s “Global Plastics Outlook: Economic Drivers, Environmental Impacts and Policy Options”.  Before joining the OECD, Mr Brown worked in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service specializing in promoting wildlife conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. He holds degrees in Economics and Policy from University College London in the United Kingdom and the College of William and Mary in the United States.

Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva since 2021. Before this, Mr. Jean-Marie Paugam was the Permanent Representative of France to the WTO. He has held various Senior Management responsibilities on Trade, Development and International Finance, with the French Treasury and with the UN system (International Trade Center). He also was Senior Research Fellow with the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri), France’s leading think tank on international affairs. Mr. Paugam graduated in 1993 from the French National Administration School (ENA) and holds a Master’s Degree in Business Law as well as a Diploma of Political Sciences from the University of Aix-Marseille.

Country Studies Division Chief in the OECD Economics Department, having supervised work on around 50 member and non-member countries. He has authored or co-authored reports on a wide range of countries, including China, India, Russia, Japan, the two Koreas, Malaysia, Thailand, New Zealand, the euro area, France, the UK, Turkey, Poland and the Nordics. He has also served as the Department’s Economic Counsellor, as the main author of the OECD Economic Outlook and as OECD G10 Secretary. Earlier on, he was an Economist at the International Monetary Fund, in the Research and European departments. He started his career at the Bank of France. He holds an Economics Ph.D. from MIT, has published two textbooks as well as numerous articles and papers. He has taught at ENA, HEC and Paris-Dauphine University.

Member of the German Bundestag where he serves on the Committee on Foreign Affairs. He is the spokesperson for the Committee of Inquiry on Afghanistan. From 2018 to 2022, Mr. Beyer held the position of Federal Government Coordinator for Transatlantic Cooperation in the chancellery of Angela Merkel. Mr. Beyer studied law at the universities of Düsseldorf and Bonn, graduating in 1999. He began his legal career as an associate attorney for the US-headquartered firm of Mayer, Brown & Platt (now Mayer Brown), followed by professional roles at Brinks, Hofer, Gilson & Lione in Chicago, and Murchison & Cumming in Los Angeles. In 2000, he enrolled in a postgraduate legal studies program at the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville where he received a Master of Laws degree. Mr. Beyer started his political career in 2009 and has been directly elected to the German Bundestag in every general election since then (2009, 2013, 2017, and 2021). As a politician, he has been known as a steadfast advocate for a strong transatlantic relationship, fostering ties between Germany, the United States, and Canada. Additionally, Beyer has been the Foreign Affairs Committee’s main rapporteur on the Western Balkans for twelve years. He is an engaged member of various organizations, such as Atlantik-Brücke, and holds the position of Executive Vice-President at the German American Association, Vice President of the Southeast Europe Association and as President of the Federal Assembly of Silesia in Germany.

Economist and entrepreneur, co-founder of GlassView, the inventors of Neuro-Powered Media^TM,and member of the board of the Paris School of Economics. President of Club Praxis and French Foreign Trade Advisor in New York. He is the co-author of  Le Capitalisme contre les inégalités (Capitalism against Inequalities) (PUF, 2022), and recipient of the “Prix Turgot” and the “Prix Louis Marin”. In 2018, he received, from the Académie des sciences morales et politiques, the Special Prize of the Political Economy, Statistics and Finance section for his book Le Gouvernement des citoyens (The Government of Citizens) (PUF, 2017), as well as for the work he has done at Club Praxis, a think tank  that promotes the use of Big Data in policy making, in particular in revamping the tax and welfare system. In 2024, Yann Coatanlem made several contributions to the debate on disruptive innovation and the cost of failure in Europe, including in the Draghi report. He graduated from ENSIMAG and HEC Paris. He is a recipient of the French National Order of Merit, of the Gold Medal of La Renaissance Française and of the Médaille d’honneur des Conseillers du commerce extérieur.

Director of the Institute of Global Health at the University of Geneva. Professor of Public Health at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Geneva. In 2019, he was elected as Co-Director of the Swiss School of Public Health in Zürich. He previously served as Founding Director of the French School of Public Health, Co-Director of the European Academic Global Health Alliance, and President of the Agency for Public Health Education Accreditation. He has conducted his research in mathematical modelling of communicable diseases and he has chaired the WHO collaborative centre for electronic disease surveillance. He is member of the Académie suisse des sciences médicales and corresponding member at the Académie nationale de médecine in Paris. MD, and Ph.D. in Biomathematics. In March 2024, he published the book Prévenez-moi! Une meilleure santé à tout âge, with Editions Robert Laffont.

Managing Director at BNP Paribas, Middle East and Africa. He is Senior Banking Executive with a 20-year experience in leading coverage, structured finance and product platforms within top-tier international and regional Corporate and Investment Banks.

Ambassador of Côte d’Ivoire to Saudi Arabia. He previously served as Director of the Asia-Pacific Region at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Côte d’Ivoire.

Ambassador of France to the United Arab Emirates. He was posted to the French Permanent Representation to the United Nations as a negotiator on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. He served as Political Advisor at the French Embassy in London and as Diplomatic Advisor to the Minister for the Armed Forces.

Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia and Engineer. He has held various positions in the Saudi government, including Minister of Agriculture, as well as Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the Netherlands and Turkey.

Dean of Academic Affairs at Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy. Before assuming his current role, he has worked as an associate lecturer of international law for diplomats at the Academy. He previously served as Head of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Management at Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi.

Head of Middle East and Africa of BNP Paribas Middle East & Africa for Corporate and Institutional Banking (CIB). He has worked for BNP Paribas for 32 years in a number of global roles, including leadership positions in Paris, New York & London. Prior to taking the position as Head of BNP Paribas Middle East & Africa, Amine was Senior Advisor to Global Markets. His previous roles also include Global Head of Sustainable Finance in Global Markets and Global Head of Research and Sustainable Investments within Corporate Institutional Banking. Amine also served as Global Head of Commodity Derivatives, and Head of Equity & Derivatives for the Americas. After studying at the Ecole Polytechnique in France, Amine joined BNP Paribas in 1987. He started his career as a precious metals options trader in 1990 in Paris and then New York, where he later headed up energy options trading (oil and natural gas). In 2005 Amine was named by Financial News among the 20 most influential Europeans in America. He is fluent in French, Arabic and English.

Chairman of Hedayah. Leading international expert on Extremism and Education, he is a member of the UAE Federal National Council for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Defense Affairs, Interior and Foreign Affairs Committee at the Council.

Former Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to France and Germany. Prior to that, he was Director of the European Affairs Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs looking after bilateral relations. Before joining the Ministry, he held major positions in the field of Media and Communications.

Director of the Strategy and Planning Department, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA). Mr. Villain is also a permanent invitee to ADIA’s Investment Committee. He began his career as an Assistant Professor of Finance at Paris University, before joining Banque Paribas in 1971 as a Portfolio Manager and later Head of Investments in the Asset Management Department. He joined ADIA in 1982, as Regional Manager for Europe before being appointed as a Senior Fund Manager for all financial assets. He returned to Paribas in 1987 to become the first Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of the newly created Paribas Asset Management Company. In 1992, he re-joined ADIA as Regional Manager for European Assets before being promoted in 1995 to the position of Advisor and then Senior Advisor for Investment Strategy. He then became Head of the Tactical Asset Allocation Unit and later Head of the Strategy Unit. Mr. Villain is a member of the Investment Committee of the Abu Dhabi Benefits and Retirement Fund, the pension fund of the citizens of Abu Dhabi. From 2004 to 2013 he was a Director of the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) and a Governor of the British Community School in Abu Dhabi (BSAK). In 2007, the President of the French Republic made him Chevalier de la Légion d’ Honneur. In 2014 he was made Officer of the British Empire by Her Majesty the Queen of England. In December 2020 the President of the French Republic promoted him to “ Officier de la Legion d’Honneur”. He was educated in Paris in Politics, Economics and Sciences (Applied Mathematics).

Minister of State to the United Arab Emirates Cabinet since September 2018. With three decades of international experience and business leadership, H.E. supports the government actively in initiatives and efforts that drive the nation’s economic diversification plans and the sustainable future of the UAE. H.E. holds a number of positions including: Chairman of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Board Member of Abu Dhabi Development Fund, Board Member of Etihad Aviation Group, Deputy Chairman of Emirates Nature – WWF and serves as the co-Chair of the UAE-UK Business Council.

His Excellency Khalifa Shaheen Almarar was appointed Minister of State of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in the United Arab Emirates in February 2021, after serving as Assistant Minister for Political Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Director of the Department of International Organizations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abu Dhabi. Previously, he served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Arab Emirates to the Republic of Turkey, to the Islamic Republic of Iran, to the Syrian Arab Republic, and as a Non-Resident Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia.

His Excellency Sheikh Shakhbut bin Nahyan Al Nahyan was appointed at the Federal Government as Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in February 2021. Previously, H.E. has served as UAE ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He played a vital role in fostering and developing mutual relations, enhancing bilateral cooperation in various fields, and realizing the common interests of people of the two brotherly countries. Before that, H.E. has served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

Her Excellency Hend Al Otaiba was named Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to France in July 2021. Previously, she led the UAE Foreign Ministry’s (MoFAIC) Strategic Communications Department, where she was responsible for representing the country’s foreign policies, serving as the principal point of contact for international media, and overseeing the communications efforts of the UAE’s diplomatic missions. Ambassador Al Otaiba joined MoFAIC in April 2017 as an advisor to the Foreign Minister. She was appointed to establish and head the Strategic Communications Department in 2019. Previously, she served as Director of Communications at Abu Dhabi Media, following a period managing cultural programs at the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority, during which she worked on the Louvre Abu Dhabi. She received her Master’s degrees from the Paris Sorbonne Abu Dhabi and the UAE National Defense College.

Director of the Department of International Security Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, United Arab Emirates. He started his diplomatic career as UAE Defense Attaché to France and a Liaison officer to NATO,  before being assigned as the Commander of the Signals Corps and then the Director of Training in the Armed Forces GHQ, and finally as the Executive Director for Policy and Cooperation in the Ministry of Defense before retiring in the rank of a Major General and joining the Ministry Of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in the beginning of 2017. 

Ambassador of the Republic of Albania to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Mr. Dredha joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2001. During his career, he has carried out different positions in MOFA. From 2010 until 2013 he served as State Protocol Director to Albanian MOFA, and from 2013 to 2016 as Consul General of the Republic of Albania to Bari, Italy. From 2016 up to today is serving as Albanian Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates. He holds a MA in International Relations from Tirana University.

Secretary-General of the University Leadership Council of the UAE. She was one of the dozen pioneer faculty members present at the creation of the American University of Sharjah, where she was subsequently elected by her peers as President of the University Faculty Senate, served as the Chairperson of the Department of International Studies, and was named as the founding Vice Chancellor for Development and Alumni Affairs of the American University of Sharjah, serving as pillar of institutional advancement of the university and senior faculty in international law, until she assumed the Secretariat General of the ULC. She has held visiting professorships at leading universities and research institutions in the US and Europe, including the University of California, the University of Michigan, the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies of American University, and the Congressional Research Service of the US Congress. Her books include Globalization and the Gulf (UK: Routledge) and The Supreme Court of the United States Political Doctrine (UC Berkeley Press). She has been invited as a member of the board of Amideast, a member of the board of Catholic University of Saint Benedict’s, and a member of the Commission for the Safeguard of the National Monuments of France, amongst other prestigious boards.

His Excellency Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak is Managing Director and Group Chief Executive Officer of Mubadala. Through organic growth, acquisition and merger, Mubadala has become a $282 billion business with assets in more than 50 countries across six international offices. In addition to his commercial responsibilities, Khaldoon holds a number of UAE Government and Abu Dhabi Government responsibilities, including: a Member of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council since 2006; a Founding Member of Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs; the Presidential Special Envoy to China since 2018; and the Founding Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Affairs Authority.

His Excellency Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mashreq. Previously, H.E. was the CEO of Mashreq for nearly 30 years and under his leadership, Mashreq has grown from a small local bank to a leading customer centric financial institution in the region known for its innovative products and services. Furthermore, H.E. is also a member of the Board of Directors of Abdullah Al Ghurair Group of Companies, one of the biggest and most successful business groups in the United Arab Emirates and the Middle East, with operations spanning more than 20 countries and business roots stretching back half a century.

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Polyteia. An entrepreneur and public policy professional passionate about the way technology is going to transform governments and cities. Polyteia enables city leaders with data-empowered governance solutions. His previous work experience ranges from non-profit sector to public sector. He has worked as a project manager for the LEAD Academy, a Berlin based social-startup promoting leadership for the public good. He is also a partner at Quinoa, a German social enterprise that focuses on offering an alternative educational model for children coming from disadvantaged backgrounds.