During a glittering award ceremony held in Dubai last May, the prestigious Emirates Business Women Award 2006, sponsored by Shell and Dubai Quality Group, was presented to six lucky winners out of seventy-six applicants.

HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation and Patron of Dubai Quality Group, honoured HH Sheikha Hind Bint Maktoum Bin Jumaa Al Maktoum for her achievements and contribution to UAE women and society.

Charles Watson, Shell Country Chairman for Dubai & Northern Emirates, Abdul Qader Obaid Ali, Chairman of Dubai Quality Group and other dignitaries were present at the award ceremony.

HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum presented the award to Nafisa Al Mulla, Head and owner of Al Murooj English School in Sharjah and Rania Abdallah, Regional Human Resources Manager for Middle East, Asia and Africa at PepsiCo International, Dubai. Four criteria winners were also honoured for their respective achievements.

Nafisa Salah Ali Taha, Owner of Café De La Paix in Abu Dhabi, was the winner of the ‘Recognition for Community’ criteria, Nazek Al Sabbagh, Director of Civil Engineering Department at the Dubai Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, was awarded the ‘Innovation’ criteria, Salma Ali Saif Bin Hareb,

Chief Executive Officer of Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority, won the ‘Leadership’criteria and Dr Behjat Al Yousuf, Supervisor in Information Technology at the Higher Colleges of Technology in Dubai Women’s College, was the winner of the ‘Career Achievement’ criteria. Members of a Supreme Jury who selected the winners were also honoured at the ceremony.

HE Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, the UAE Minister of Economics and Planning, chaired the Supreme Jury which included Dr. Rawdha Al Mutawa, Chairperson of the UAE Businesswomen Council; Dr Amna Khalifa, Professor at the Faculty of Education of UAE University; Ms. Judith Barton, Chief Assessor, Emirates Business Women Award 2006; Hussain Al Mahmoudi, External Affairs and HSSE Manager, Shell Markets, Abdul Qader Obaid Ali and Mrs. Hessa Tahlak, Quality Executives at Dubai Quality Group Speaking at the ceremony, Charles Watson said, “The Emirates Business Women Award 2006 is Shell’s recognition of the immense effort women have put in to overcome cultural, social and financial hurdles on their path towards personal and professional fulfillment.

Today we also celebrate the courage and tenacity with which women in the UAE have pursued their dreams, and the openness with which they have embraced change, embarking on entrepreneurial ventures or on careers in hitherto untapped fields. Shell is committed to increasing the number of women in the boardrooms of business and has set tough targets to ensure that women hold 20 per cent of its senior executive jobs by 2008.

We are delighted with the enthusiastic response the Award has elicited year after year, and plan to extend its scope by bringing women of the larger Middle East region under its purview in future.”

Believing in the motto ‘Every Child Matters’, Nafisa Al Mulla, winner of the Award in the Business Woman category, established Al Murooj English School in Sharjah in 1995, which has today a population of 160 students.

Her commitment to the cause of education has earned her several honours, including the British Business Group Award, the Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Award for Achievement in 2001 and the Shaikh Rashid Award for Achievement in 1998.

Rania Abdalla, the Award winner in the Professional Woman category, is responsible for PepsiCo International’s 13,000 employees working in five business units spread across thirty-five countries.

She is credited with introducing employee benefits, harmonious pay structures, cost avoidance strategies and accountable practices, besides achieving Emiratisation targets in PepsiCo’s businesses.

Her efforts have been appreciated by the UAE National Human Resources Development and Employment Authority and have gained her the Inclusion Award for Emiratisation.

The Award, in its fourth successive year, was launched jointly by Shell and Dubai Quality Group to recognise and honour the contribution which both national and expatriate women have made in the developmentof the UAE. The Award promotes women achievers as role models for other women and serves as an effective networking forum.