Businesswomen and activists top the Arabian Business ranking

Lubna Khalid Al Qasimi

A niece to the ruler of the Sharjah emirate, Al Qasimi is the top diplomat for U.A.E.'s development and humanitarian efforts with the outside world. The first woman to hold a cabinet post in the country, she is largely considered to be the new face of professional women in the Arab region. Prior to joining the government in 2004, she was CEO of Tejari, the first business-to-business e-market in the Middle East. 2013 SPOTLIGHT: Abu Dhabi hosted the first Global Vaccine Summit last month.


Minister of Foreign Trade, United Arab Emirates
Age 55
Residence Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Citizenship United Arab Emirates
Education Bachelor of Arts / Science, California State Chico; EMBA, American University of Sharjah

Dalia Mogahed

Dalia Mogahed is Chairman and CEO of Mogahed Consulting, a Washington, D.C. based executive coaching and consulting firm specializing in Muslim societies and the Middle East. She is former Executive Director of and Senior Analyst for the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies where she led the analysis of surveys of Muslims worldwide, including in the U.S. and Europe. With John L. Esposito, Ph.D., she is coauthor of the book Who Speaks for Islam?: What a Billion Muslims Really Think. Dalia was appointed to President Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, where she served on the Inter-religious Dialogue and Cooperation Task Force. Arabian Business magazine recognized her as the most influential Arab woman in the world, and The Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre included Mogahed in their list of the 500 most influential Muslims. Ashoka named her the Arab World’s Social Entrepreneur of the Year in 2010, and Mogahed received her alumni association’s prestigious Forward Under 40 award for outstanding contributions by a graduate of the University of Wisconsin. She is a WEF Young Global Leader and serves on the Forum's Global Agenda Council on the Arab World.