Her Excellency Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid bin Sultan Al Qasimi holds the distinction of being the first Emirati woman to assume a ministerial post (2004), an achievement that put the UAE on the international map of female empowerment.
She is now a member of Aurora50’s Advisory Council and Vice President of Kalimat Foundation, a UAE non-profit organisation for disadvantaged and visually impaired children that upholds their right to read.
Sheikha Lubna joined the Federal Government in 2004 as Minister of Economy, becoming the first woman to assume a cabinet position in the UAE.
She was later appointed in 2008 as Minister of Foreign Trade, and then in 2013 as Minister of International Cooperation and Development, with the responsibility of boosting the UAE’s role as a major donor and key player in global human development. She then became the world’s first Minister of State for Tolerance.
Sheikha Lubna was appointed President of Zayed University (2014-2018) for her drive, commitment and determination to achieve the educational priorities set by the UAE Government to attain the hallmark of excellency and position Zayed University amongst the premier renowned international universities.
Sheikha Lubna is also: a Board Director at the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation; a member of the Governing Board of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy – National University of Singapore; a member of the Board of Trustees for Thunderbird, The American Graduate School of International Management, Phoenix Arizona; a Board Director at the Emirates Foundation for Youth Development; a member of the Board of Trustees of the Dubai School of Government; and Co-Founder and Board Member of the Friends of Cancer Patients.
In 2017 Forbes Magazine recognized her as the most powerful Arab woman and the world’s 36th most powerful women.
Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi obtained a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from California State University of Chico (CSUChico) in 1981 and an Executive MBA from the American University of Sharjah in 2002.
She also has an Honorary Doctorate in Science from California State University at Chico (US), an Honorary Doctorate in Law from the University of Exeter (UK) and an Honorary Doctorate in Economics from the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (Korea).
Join the sisterhood of success! Pathway is a powerful 12-week board accelerator. Limited time? No problem. Pathway skyrockets busy executive’s board careers with 40 hours of expert-led training and a corporate governance diploma. Think of it as the boardroom launchpad for influential GCC women.
NOORA is a real-world community of talented, cross-industry corporate women. Our members range from first-time managers to seasoned leaders. These rising stars convene to support each other’s growth and professional success. The result: personal and corporate legacies. NOORA offers transformative workshops, high-powered networking and an online hub.
The Summit is more than an event. It is a convergence of change-makers: from regional and global leaders to government ministers and top executives. A space to explore emerging trends, to advance the DEI agenda and disrupt the status quo. The Summit is the region’s forum for transformation and lasting impact through diversity and inclusion.
We have set out to fix AI’s gender bias using AI itself. We have created a vast image bank of women in various professions, to teach AI that women can be engineers, mathematicians, CEOs and more. All of our images are royalty- and rights-free, and we encourage you to download and use them on the internet so AI can recognise diversity.
