Digital Lebanon:

Mr. Abou Zaki has more than 30 years of experience in Al-Iktissad Wal-Aamal Group, where his innovative approach was a major drive for the Group’s diversification. His main focus has been to help the Group’s development into a leading force in conferences and business events in the region. One of his contributions was to develop conferences from a platform for speakers to a parnership involveing stakeholders and policy makers thus helping in identifying real policy options and opportunities

In the process, Mr. Abou Zaki has developed a close working relationship with government leaders, policy makers, as well as a wide spectrum of leading figures in business and banking. He is often referred to as a trusted  adviser with estensive knowlege of Middles Easst economy and business arena. Mr Abou Zaki contributes to regional policy forums and is a frequent commemtator in leading media on regional and global events.

Faysal Abou Zaki also serves as CEO of the newly established Middle East Projects Information Center (MEPIC) which is positioned to become a leader in business and financial information across the region.

Paul is the Lead Governance Specialist for the World Bank in the Mashreq. He is based in Lebanon. Prior to this he resided in, and performed similar roles for the World Bank in, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Rwanda. Paul is an experienced "Big 4" Consulting Director having worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) for over 17 years (1994-2011) where he latterly, led public sector advisory work across 9 countries in Africa. Paul has extensive experience of delivering public sector technical assistance projects involving governance, technology and transformational change, across the Middle East, South Asia, Africa, Europe and the UK..

H.E. Mr. Afiouni is the Minister of State for Information Technology in Lebanon.

He is a board member of the Lebanese International Finance Executives (LIFE) since 2013 and a founding member of LIFE.

He is Managing Director of Credit Suisse Investment Bank in the Global Markets Division.

Over his 17 years’ career at Credit Suisse, Adel held a number of senior positions in Emerging Markets across both Global Markets and Investment Banking.

He is a graduate of Ecole Polytechnique in Paris. He also holds a Master’s degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Paris I Pantheon- Sorbonne in Paris, and a Master’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering from ENST Paris.

H.E. Dr. Chidiac is currently the Minister of State for Administrative Development.

She began her professional career at Free Lebanon Radio station in 1982. She was a correspondent and presenter of a television news program at LBC. She also took charge of the media department at the Lebanese embassy in Switzerland between 1989 and 1990.

She has been teaching journalism at Notre Dame University Louaizé (NDU) since 1997.

Six months after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 2005, she was the victim of an assassination attempt, which she miraculously survived.

In July 2006, H.E. Dr. Chidiac was back on-air for the prime time talk-show, ”Bikol Joraa” (With Audacity), which became a hit international and national news TV show. She also founded the May Chidiac Foundation, an organization committed to education, social welfare and human rights with an emphasis on women’s rights. 

Throughout her career, she has received numerous international honors including “Le Prix de la Francophonie pour la Liberté d’expression,” UNESCO Award “Guillermo Cano/UNESCO Award for Freedom of Expression,” and the “IWMF (International Woman Media Foundation) Courage in Journalism Award,” which was delivered in Los Angeles, New York and Washington.

In 2009 she established the May Chidiac for Freedom of Speech Foundation in New York, a group which dedicates itself to providing support and opportunities to individuals interested in pursuing careers in Journalism, and to promote freedom of expression in Lebanon and the region.

H.E. Dr. Chidiac obtained her PhD degree with High Distinction in Communications from Paris II University Panthéon Assas.

H.E. Mr. Choucair is currently the Minister of Telecommunications in Lebanon.

H.E. Mr. Choucair was CEO and Vice President of Patchi, one of the most renowned chocolate brands in the region. He has also launched several industrial projects and invested in several real estate companies. 

He assumed responsibilities in several professional associations and contributed to the foundation of many others.  He is currently the Chairman of the Federation of the Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Lebanon, Chairman of the Lebanese Economic Organizations, & Bureau member of the Economic and Social council in Lebanon.

In April 2012, he became Chairman of the Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the Mediterranean (ASCAME) based in Barcelona and grouping 220 chambers around the Mediterranean.

With more than 40 years of solid experience in business and in communications & information technology, Eng. Helmy lead numerous executive management positions in two Fortune 100 companies, namely NCR/AT&T and Oracle in the United States, Europe, Middle East, and Africa, reaching the positions of Managing Director of NCR UAE, Managing Director of Oracle Egypt, and Chairman of Orange Egypt. He has also contributed to the development of the digital society in Egypt and MEA as chairman of the Chamber of Communications & Information Technology, member of the American Chamber of commerce, founding member of the Arab Digital Economy Federation, and through numerous positions on the Board of Directors and Board of Trustees of many organizations, institutions, universities, and NGOs.

In January 2013, Eng. Atef Helmy assumedresponsibility as Egypt's Minister of Communications & Information Technology. In recognition of his efforts, professionalism and leadership, Eng. Helmy has chaired the World Summit for Information Societies (WSIS +10) high-level event in Geneva in June 2014 and was awarded the Golden Medallion from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) for his active role.

For ten years, Eng. Helmy honorably served in the Egyptian Military Force in the field of communications and information technology. Helmy holds a B.Sc. in Communication and Electrical Engineering (with Honors) from the Military Technical College in 1973, a Diploma in Computer Science from Ain Shams University in 1979, and a master's degree in IT from Ain Shams University in 1982.

Current roles:

• Chairman, Prime Business Consulting
• Senior Advisor, Orange MEA
• Ambassador of Orange to Smart Africa
• Board Member, SAMENA Council
• Founding Member & President of the General Assembly, Arab Digital Economy Federation
• Founding Member, Egypt Fintech Association
• Honorary Member, American Chamber of Commerce
• Member, Board of Trustees, British University in Egypt
• Member, Board of Trustees, Beit El Zakat (Egypt House of Alms & Charity)
• Board Member, Al Mohandes Insurance
• Board Member, Al Hayat Insurance

H.E. Mr. Afiouni is the Minister of State for Information Technology in Lebanon.

He is a board member of the Lebanese International Finance Executives (LIFE) since 2013 and a founding member of LIFE.

He is Managing Director of Credit Suisse Investment Bank in the Global Markets Division.

Over his 17 years’ career at Credit Suisse, Adel held a number of senior positions in Emerging Markets across both Global Markets and Investment Banking.

He is a graduate of Ecole Polytechnique in Paris. He also holds a Master’s degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Paris I Pantheon- Sorbonne in Paris, and a Master’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering from ENST Paris.

Born in 1967 and married with three kids, Nicolas Sehnaoui served as the Minister of Telecommunications of the Republic of Lebanon between June 2011 and February 2014. He successfully upgraded Lebanon’s telecommunications infrastructure rolling out 3G and 4G, securing redundancy on the international connectivity, launching a national Fiber Optic Backbone and Beirut Digital District to name only a few of his accomplishments.

His efforts were crowned by the United Nations International Telecommunication Union that ranked Lebanon 1st in progress out of 157 countries in the 2012 ICT Development Index.

Prior to taking office Sehnaoui successfully managed several companies across a variety of industries. He now chairs the UK Lebanon Tech Hub that aims at creating a corridor between Lebanon and England to allow Lebanese ICT entrepreneurs to access the world supply chain through the London platform.

In May 2018 he was elected member Parliament for the Beirut 1 district.

 A glimpse into the achievements of Imad Kreidieh

An international business professional, an inspirational leader with extensive board level experience; meet Ogero’s Chairman and General Director striving to establish a new era in Lebanese Telecommunications, Imad Kreidieh.

Having acquired specialized expertise in the development and implementation of highly effective strategies for several global mobile operators and institutions, Imad has built a solid track history in leading businesses to remarkable revenue growth and expansion.

Combining an entrepreneurial outlook, strong commercial skills, a visionary mindset and a passion for achieving objectives, Imad Kreidieh has taken on the mission of transforming the nation to the regional’s leading digital hub.

Education:

• Dual MBA in Business Administration ESA / ESCP
• Master of Arts, Monetary Economics, Northeastern University

Having more than sixteen years of experience in Management and Business Development with core expertise in free and economic zones’ development, Dr. Hassan Dennaoui was appointed in April 2019 as acting Chairman/General Manager of the Tripoli Special Economic Zone Authority (TSEZ) after 4 years working as an advisor to the former TSEZ chairman H.E. Raya Haffar El Hassan.

Dr. Dennaoui has an international and regional experience as being previously in several managerial and consultancy positions with SUEZ Environnement (France, KSA and Lebanon) and Khatib & Alami (GCC and Levant) offering strategy, management and technical consultancies for regional economic zones (King Abdullah Economic City, Duqm Special Economic Zone, Salalah Free Zone, etc…).

Holding of a PhD in Management Information System, Masters in Computer Communication Engineering and Masters in Applied Mathematics, Dr. Dennaoui is currently a lecturer in the business and technology fields in many Lebanese universities.

Nadim Z. Khater is the Chief Commercial Officer at touch, the leading Lebanese wireless operator and part of Zain group. Nadim has developed solid acumen in both the technical and commercial dimensions of the telecommunication industry having served as HR Director, IT Director and finally CCO. Before joining Zain Group in 2004, Nadim worked as a consultant at Accenture delivering projects for telecommunication companies in the Middle East region. Nadim’s passion lies in marketing and building value propositions that make companies relevant and profitable. He values simplicity, transparency, and results. Nadim holds a master degree in engineering management from Virginia Tech, USA. Along with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the American University of Beirut. Nadim is a member of the board of a local mobile payments startup and a member of the investment committee of a local VC fund.

Jihad Tayara is the Chief Executive Officer for Evoteq, a key subsidiary and digital transformation catalyst under the Bee’ah’s group of companies.

Jihad is responsible for formulating the strategic direction of the company, and for cementing its position as the region’s premier technology management partner; by developing impactful and disruptive technology solutions that increase efficiency, support business growth, and fuel digital innovation. Under Jihad’s leadership, Evoteq has undertaken several large-scale projects; such as managing the largest municipal digital transformation project in the GCC; deploying Sharjah’s first blockchain platform; and establishing a revolutionary track-and-trace application, Smart Track, to fortify and secure global healthcare supply chains.

Prior to joining Bee’ah, Jihad was the Vice President for ICT Commercial at du, leading new smart initiatives and collaborations for digital transformation for Smart City, IoT, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Cloud & Smart Solutions. He was responsible for leading several key projects there, such as Dubai Pulse, the most comprehensive smart city platform in the region with Smart Dubai. Jihad has won several recognitions and awards for this project, at forums such as Telecom World ME, COMMS MEA & Telecom Review Summit. Jihad was also responsible for the implementation of Hassantuk, a nationwide IoT solution with Injazat for the Ministry of Interior; Dubai Silicon Oasis’ first smart district and the national CRM program for all government entities, with the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority; and the first smart city Wi-Fi UAE initiative.

Before proving his mettle at du, Jihad had worked for Motorola Networks in Dubai, Orascom in Cairo and Investcom in Beirut. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering from the American University of Beirut, and a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Cambridge.

Nizar Ajeeb is the Chief Technology Officer & Chief Academy Officer of Startecheus, a next-generation FinTech Studio for Entrepreneurs.

He is a scholar of Lebanese International Finance Executives (LIFE).

Through his Career, Nizar held multiple Tech positions. He served as a Software Architect & a Senior Technical Consultant for Dubai Smart City project as part of Akka Technologies & Thales. Prior to that, he was a Software Architect at Capital Banking Solutions.

He is a graduate from Oxford University with an MBA degree. He also holds a Masters degree in Computer Engineering from AUB, BE in Computer Engineering from AUB, BS in Mathematics from AUB and a minor in Philosophy.  He is the author/co-author of two conference papers and one journal paper.

Dr. Raymond Khoury is a Partner at Arthur D. Little (ADL) and leads the Technology and Innovation Management (TIM) practice in the Middle East. He has over 29 years of consulting experience in IT and digital strategy and implementation management, particularly for large-scale public sector technology-driven transformation programs, taking mere concepts to operating realities.

Prior to joining ADL, Dr. Khoury served as an Executive Vice President at Booz Allen Hamilton, where he co-led the re-establishment of the Middle East business, led the regional digital practice across industries, and drove the firm’s regional office footprint expansion. Before Booz Allen, Raymond was a partner at Booz & Company where he led the regional digital government business. Prior to that, he worked as a UNDP programme director at the Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR) in Lebanon where he managed a whole-of-government administrative reform and services modernization agenda, as a Senior Technology Advisor for the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as an International Business Development Manager at Multinational Multimedia Computing, a US-based firm. 

Dr. Khoury is an expert in the functional areas of:

• Digital & Innovation Strategies
• Large-scale Transformations (mainly eGovernment or Digital Government programs)
• National Development Agendas (mainly national ICT and Digital programs)
• Public Sector Modernization and Capability Development
• Program Implementation Management

Raymond holds a Ph.D., Engineer’s Degree, and M.S. from MIT, and a B.S. in engineering from Northeastern University.  He is an author of numerous reports, a frequent speaker in regional and international conferences and forums and is often interviewed by regional media on topics related to digital government, e-commerce, innovation, Internet, and leading ICT and Digital trends.

Kimberly Johns is a Senior Public Sector Specialist in the Governance Global Practice covering the Middle East and North Africa region.  She is also the Task Team Leader of the World Bank Group’s GovTech Global Partnership. Her work focuses on digital governance, service delivery and citizen engagement.

She has 15 years of experience working on topics of institutional and policy reform. Since joining the World Bank Group in 2007, she has led investment projects focusing on e-government and service delivery in Europe and Africa and contributed to a number of reports targeting governance issues including administrative burden, accountability and corruption.

Before coming to the World Bank Group, Kimberly worked in the private sector as an ICT programmer and database administrator developing online applications in Chicago, Illinois.

Kimberly holds a Ph.D. in Public Administration (specializing in Science, Technology and Information Policy and Research Methods) from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Master of Science in Public Service Management from DePaul University. She has published on topics of digital citizenship and has lectured at the graduate level on topics of policy design and analysis, policy implementation and research methods for public service.

Julian Lampietti is the Manager for the Global Agriculture Practice in Middle East, North Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia. His responsibilities include business development, client relations, and oversight for analytical and advisory services agricultural projects. Prior to taking up this assignment, Julian was the Sustainable Development Program Leader for Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay based in Buenos Aires. Julian has published books and journal articles on a broad range of topics including poverty, economics, agriculture, food security, logistics, and energy. He has a PhD in Public Policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master’s in Natural Resources Economics from Duke University.

Dynamic and self–triggered banking executive with more than 30 years of solid experience in business development, retail banking, operations and marketing, Mr. Georges Aouad joined Bank of Beirut in 1998 and righteously established the Business Development Department in 2003 before being appointed Director of Consumer Banking Division in 2005.

Prior to joining Bank of Beirut, he worked with BLOM Bank and Banque du Credit Populaire where he was part of the team who have put in place the “Manuel de Procedure”. In addition to his notable banking experience, Mr. Aouad has also been a Professor of “Financial Mathematics” and “Economie & Organisation des Entreprises” at the Holy Spirit University where he is currently an MBA lecturer in Retail banking.

Mr. Aouad holds Bachelor of Science (BS) in Business & Economics from the Holy Spirit University, Kaslik-Lebanon.

Dr. Wissam Sammouri is the head of the Master’s in Business Analytics (MSBA) program at the American University of Beirut and an award-winning data scientist and entrepreneur with a PhD in predictive data mining and years of consulting experience in the field. His projects have earned several international prizes including the French Tech International prize, Vivatech positive impact award in education, European Youth Award, ExpoDubai2020 grant and other. 

In parallel to his previous work as chief information officer at Salon Septième Paris, a luxury apparel brand based in Paris, Dr. Sammouri has been a visiting lecturer in several universities in Lebanon (AUB, LAU, USJ, ENA) and abroad teaching Data Mining, Data-Driven Digital Marketing, Growth Hacking and E-commerce technologies. He is also on the advisory board of two French and American companies based in Paris and a 3-year member of the founders program at StationF, the largest and most selective startup incubator in the world, in which one of the companies he co-founded resides.

Abdul Salam Knio, is the managing partner of Information and Communication Technology W.L.L. (known as ICT) in Qatar. He is a digital transformation executive and advisor, helping organizations in both the public and private sectors to drive the Digital Business Transformation initiatives.

Mr. Knio holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the Lebanese American University of Beirut in 1989, and he brings with him around 30 years of diverse experience in business management and technology.

As a Digital Transformation evangelist, Mr. Knio also holds many certificates in the modern digital technologies, business sustainability management, innovation and design-thinking, leadership, consulting services, and more.

He was also a guest lecturer in Carnegie Mellon University Qatar, Business Judge in the Qatar Business Incubation Center, and other innovation forums.

Jawad Fakih is a Digital Transformation Evangelist and CO-Founder of TYCONZ, a Leading SAP Solutions Provider in MENA Region.

He is passionate about introducing innovation and growth for SMEs and Large Enterprises through business simplification, automation and optimization using SAP as leading technology. He has more than 15 years of experience in Business Solutions Delivery and Management with multi-industry experience including Public Sector, Banking, Retail and EC&O.

Mr. Fakih holds a MS in Information Systems Management from University of Liverpool.

Sevag Papazian is a partner at Sparc Consulting in the Middle East, a boutique advisory firm helping governments and companies bridge the gap between their high-level strategies and their execution capabilities. 

He was previously a partner with Strategy& (formerly known as Booz & Company) in the Digital Business and Technology practice. He has worked with senior government officials and C-level executives on national and corporate strategies, operating models and restructuring, and digital transformations.

He has co-authored multiple viewpoints on the digital economy, including the state of digitization in GCC businesses (co-authored with Siemens), the impact of digitization on the labor market (co-authored with LinkedIn), and the disruptive potential of the sharing economy.

Sevag started his career with Murex as a software developer. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and a Bachelor degree in Computer and Communication Engineering from the American University of Beirut.

Gaurang Shah is the MEA lead for Digital Payments. In his current role, Gaurang is in charge of developing solutions and executing market strategies for cash displacement, leveraging digital payment technologies.

Prior to this role, Gaurang was MENA Division Lead for Global Processing, focused on developing and executing market strategies and national ecosystem development across the cluster

Gaurang joined Mastercard in April 2013 and since then he has been driving several key initiatives across the region. He also successfully led the Safety & Security agenda for the region with the conceptualization and execution of the Fraud solutions strategy.

Gaurang brings 15+ years of experience in technology, banking and payment space working closely with global companies – Infosys (large software exporter), ICICI Bank (Largest private sector bank in India), Visa and current Mastercard.

Gaurang graduated from the Indian School of Business (affiliated to Kellogg’s, Wharton and London Business School) with a degree in Business Administration. 

Mr.  Hectorcurrently serves as Advisor for Communication and Information in UNESCO’s Regional Bureau for Sciences in the Arab States. Since joining UNESCO in 2000 under its Young Professionals Programme, he has been involved in supporting project initiatives and policy actions in Africa, South America, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East that promote ICT-enabled access to information and knowledge. Much of this work has sought to address inequalities in access to information and knowledge linked to issues such as gender, language, literacy, island/rural living and disability. Initially trained as a civil and structural engineer he now holds doctoral degrees in Management Science as well as in Knowledge & Innovation Management. Since 2012, Paul has been involved in the United Nations University’s annual international conference on the Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV) as a Track Chair and a member of various committees. He is the author of book chapters, peer-reviewed conference and journal papers as well as case studies. He has been involved in the development of various courses and has lectured in postgraduate business programmes. Paul is an alumnus of the J. William Fulbright Scholar and US State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Programmes. His research interests include knowledge-based development, urbanization, entrepreneurship and medtech applications.

Jakub Polec is a Business Innovation Director for Oracle Middle East, Africa and Central Europe. He is helping Oracle customers to execute Digital Transformation and deliver innovation initatives. Jakub has a big passion for new business models, Design Thinking and Digital Transformation models in line with market and customer changes around us. 

He has over 18 years of business experience with Microsoft, telecom companies including T-Mobile and France Telecom, and consulting companies like the Center of Adam Smith. He is also a high energy physicist from Warsaw University, worked on his PhD at CERN, Switzerland, and received his MBA from the European High School.

Sam is the President of the Government Blockchain Association.

He is a recognized and award winning executive in innovations and an accomplished and result

focused senior executive with 25+ years working experience in the ICT filed.

Throughout his professional journey he has driven over $1.5 Billion in revenue growth.

Sam has high-profile leadership with a wide range of global experience from Business Development and Sales to Operations and Finance.

Walid has been active in venture capital and in new venture development for the past 19 years with 50+ VC investments executed since 2010.

Prior to founding MEVP and growing its AUM to $260M, Walid was the CEO of Dubai International Capital's venture arm "the Arab Business Angels Network" (ABAN), which managed a regional seed venture fund as well as the first Business Angels network in the Arab World. Prior to ABAN he has served on the investment-management team of Abraaj Capital.

Walid has co-founded, invested in, led and exited several startups in the MENA region, spanning a range of industries with a focus on technology.

In May 2017, Mr. Mohamed Al Abbar has acquired a non-controlling stake in MEVP.

Walid has received a Bachelor's degree in Economics from McGill University (Canada), and a Masters in Finance from H.E.C (France).

Abdulaziz Al Loughani is the Managing Partner with Faith Capital.

Previously, Abdulaziz was the founding Vice Chairman (Executive) of the Kuwait National Fund for SMEs Development, a USD 7bn independent public institution responsible for developing the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Kuwait (2013-2017).

Prior to this role, he was a co-founder and Managing Partner of Talabat.com until 2010, and has since then been investing in technology startups and involved in a number of local and regional entrepreneurial initiatives.

Previously, he was a Director at Global Capital Management, the alternative investments arm of Global Investment House “Global” and was responsible for establishing a Venture Capital practice at Global.  He has played a major role in managing key investments within the Private Equity Group of Global by handling various assignments on corporate restructuring, business planning, deal structuring, due diligence and managing portfolio companies to exit.  Abdulaziz has served as an executive and member of board on a number of companies within the MENA region in the technology, banking, healthcare, manufacturing, consumer finance, food & beverage and real estate sectors.

Abdulaziz holds a Bachelor's degree - double major in Information Systems and E-Commerce from University of Toledo, and an MBA degree from London Business School.

Sharif El-Badawi currently serves as a Partner at 500 Startups, the most active venture capital firm in the world. In his role, he manages 500 Startups' MENA fund, focusing on seed stage investments in the Middle East and North Africa. In addition, Sharif is the Chairman of the Board of TechWadi, where he helps bridge MENA startups with Silicon Valley. He also serves on several advisory boards for startups in the MENA region and Silicon Valley. 

Previously, Sharif was the Partner Lead to VCs and Startups at Google where he worked with top tier VCs and their most promising startups on strategies that bring all of Google to their businesses. Joining from AdMob almost 7 prior, he led performance advertising strategy for Google's largest customers in North America covering Mobile, Search and Display ads. Before AdMob, Sharif was a technologist and serial entrepreneur having founded or co-founded several companies in the Consumer Internet and B2B space over twelve years. Sharif earned his MBA from UC Irvine Merage School of Business and his BS in Neuroscience from UCLA. He recently relocated from his home state of California to Dubai with his wife and three children.

Sinem Kaya is leading the Oracle Strategic Business Development Team for the Middle East & Africa, Central & Eastern Europe Region.

She worked in the IT industry for the past 16 years and she has held regional positions both in Sun Microsystems & Oracle. Her current role involves working with tech startups to accelerate home grown cloud-based innovation through solid partnerships with Oracle & enabling next generation cloud workforce to support driving digital transformation agendas.

 Sinem is also involved in designing high impact customized strategic initiatives to empower tech entrepreneurs, women, youth & refugees in collaboration w/ Public & Private sector, Development Agencies, Startup Ecosystem Pioneers, NGOs & NPOs.

Priscilla is the Co-Founder & COO of Myki, winner of the Tech industry’s highest honor: PCMag’s "Editors’ Choice Award 2019”, and named one of Apple's most ‘Powerful Password Managers’. Ranked by Forbes as one of the Top 100 Business women in the Middle East, Priscilla has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur and TechCrunch. Priscilla believes in sharing what she continues to learn on her entrepreneurial journey, in hopes of inspiring hopeful entrepreneurs to take risks, build businesses, and make an impact.

Ziad Alame is a diabetic founder on a mission to make diabetes management less diabetic. He is an experienced coder with a demonstrated history of working in the computer software industry. Skilled in rapid prototyping in web and mobile apps using the latest technologies with focus on creating product-market fit. Previously co-founded multiple startups in multiple industries (social, education, job creation, etc.) and currently focusing on AI and healthcare through Spike Diabetes Assistant while supporting other startups in their journey. Selected as one of Lebanon's Top 20 Entrepreneurs, Stanford AMENDS delegate, Blackbox Alumni, GITEX 2018 Supernova Champion, winner of MIT Business Plan Competition, Speed Lebanon Alumni, etc. 

Mirna Sleiman is the founder and CEO of Fintech Galaxy, a global crowdsourcing platform that connects the fintech ecosystem.

She is a senior executive with 15+ years of experience in government relations, business strategy, digital communications and journalism, mostly within the MENA region.

Mirna managed public sector business for Thomson Reuters across MENA and partnered with international organizations to promote innovation and social change.

She sits on the advisory board of the Union of Arab Banks and MENA Research Partners.

She spent more than 10 years as a financial journalist with Reuters, Dow Jones, The Wall Street Journal and Zawya.

Mirna is certified from MIT university in Fintech and ecommerce, and certified from Columbia University in Digital Marketing and Communications, and is currently an Executive MBA candidate with City University of London.