The people spearheading Dubai's expo plans

27 January 2014

Twelve key figures involved with Dubai’s Expo preparations

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Vice-president and prime minister, UAE; Ruler, Dubai

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum

Position: Ruler of Dubai, vice-president and prime minister of the UAE

Biography: As ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum has been the driving force behind Dubai’s bid to host the Expo 2020. He was appointed crown prince of Dubai in January 1995 and, in 2004, established Dubai Holding Group, a global investment holding company that has played a major role in the development of Dubai as a modern metropolis. Sheikh Mohammed became ruler of the emirate on 4 January 2006, aged 57, following the death of his father, Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid al-Maktoum. A day later, he was elected by the UAE Supreme Council as the country’s vice-president. He was appointed as the UAE’s prime minister in February 2006. Sheikh Mohammed attended Mons Officer Cadet School in the late 1960s, which is now part of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the UK, and later served as the UAE’s defence minister.

Contact Website: www.sheikhmohammed.com

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed al-Maktoum

Position: Crown prince of Dubai

Biography: Following a royal decree in January 2014, Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan will supervise the Expo 2020 Preparatory Committee, which is responsible for drawing up plans and realising the vision for the exhibition. Along with providing guidelines for security and economics, the committee will supervise international and regional advertising campaigns to promote the event and encourage participation, as well as coordinating public and private efforts. Progress reports will be submitted to his father, Sheikh Mohammed. Sheikh Hamdan was appointed as the chairman of the Dubai Executive Council in 2006 and was named crown prince of Dubai in February 2008. Like his father, Sheikh Hamdan graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the UK in 2000, before going on to study at the London School of Economics.

Contact Website: www.fazza.ae

Reem al-Hashimy

Position: UAE minister of state and managing director of the Expo 2020 Preparatory Committee

Biography Reem al-Hashimy was sworn in as minister of state in the UAE cabinet in February 2008. In addition to her ministerial duties, she is also managing director of the Expo 2020 Preparatory Committee and manages the international affairs unit of Dubai’s Executive Office. Al-Hashimy was the managing director of the Higher Committee of Dubai World Expo 2020, which was formed in February 2012 to lead the campaign and draw up plans for the site in Jebel Ali. She also chairs the National Bureau of Statistics. Al-Hashimy began her career as commercial attache and then deputy chief of mission at the UAE embassy in Washington in the US. Al-Hashimy graduated with a degree in international relations and French from Tufts University in Boston, and holds a master’s degree from Harvard University, also in the US.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 319 1399

Hussain Nasser Lootah

Position: Director-general, Dubai Municipality

Biography: Hussain Nasser Lootah was appointed acting director-general of Dubai Municipality in February 2006, and has held the position formally since January 2009. As head of one of Dubai’s key institutions, he also sits on the Expo 2020 Preparatory Committee. Lootah joined Dubai Municipality in 1985, having started his career as an engineer with the Federal Ministry for Electricity & Water. At the municipality, Lootah was appointed assistant director-general for environment and public health affairs. In 2004, he was transferred to the post of assistant director-general for planning and building affairs, which involved overseeing the planning and survey department, the building and government housing department, the geographical information systems centre and the statistics centre. He was promoted in December 2005 to deputy director-general of the municipality. Lootah played a key role in the establishment of the UAE Engineers Society, chairing the body from 1992-96.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 221 5555

Helal Saeed al-Marri

Position: Director-general, Dubai Tourism & Commerce Marketing (DTCM)

Biography: Helal Saeed al-Marri was appointed director-general of DTCM in January 2013. He is responsible for executing Dubai’s tourism vision, which aims to double visitor numbers to 20 million by 2020 and triple the tourism sector’s contribution to the economy to AED300bn ($81.7bn) a year. Al-Marri is also CEO of Dubai World Trade Centre, chairman of Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Sports Complex and a member of the Expo 2020 Preparatory Committee. He serves on the boards of several government entities and UAE-based private firms, including the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, International Humanitarian City and Aramex. Al-Marri has a master’s degree in business administration from the London Business School in the UK. He previously worked as a consultant with the US’ McKinsey & Company and Netherlands-based KPMG.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 282 1111

Mattar Mohammed al-Tayer

Position: Chairman, Roads & Transport Authority (RTA)

Biography: Mattar al-Tayer is chairman of Dubai’s RTA and vice-chairman of state-owned Etihad Rail. As head of the RTA, Al-Tayer has been responsible for meeting Dubai’s growing transportation infrastructure needs, covering roads and integrated bus, metro, tram and marine networks. Al-Tayer has also been a member of Dubai’s Executive Council and vice-president of the emirate’s infrastructure and environment committee since December 2005. Al-Tayer began work as a trainee engineer at Dubai Municipality in 1982, rising to become director of the roads department. In 1994, he was made assistant director-general of the municipality, before joining the RTA as chairman in 2005. Al-Tayer is a member of several committees, and was on the Higher Committee for Dubai’s Expo bid. He is a board member of the UAE General Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 206 5511

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum

Position: President of the Department of Civil Aviation and chairman and CEO of Emirates

Biography: Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum was named chairman of the Dubai Expo Preparatory Committee in a royal decree on 7 January to ensure the cooperation and coordination of Dubai’s various government bodies. He previously headed the committee formed to bid for the Expo. Sheikh Ahmed has been at the forefront of Dubai’s economic development for the past 25 years, spearheading the expansion of the aviation sector through his leadership of the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) and Emirates Airline. He began his career in aviation in 1985, when he was appointed president of the DCA and became chairman of Emirates at its launch. He is now chairman and CEO of Emirates Airline & Group, which includes Dnata. Sheikh Ahmed has a degree from the University of Denver in the US.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 216 1193

Khalifa Suhail al-Zaffin

Position: Executive chairman, Dubai Aviation City Corporation

Biography: Khalifa al-Zaffin graduated from the US’ Arizona State University with a bachelor’s of science degree in chemical engineering. He began his career at Dubai Aluminiumin 1984, where he worked as a senior project engineer. Al-Zaffin moved to the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) in May 1989 to become assistant director of engineering. In 1991, he was promoted to director of engineering and projects and remained in this position until he was appointed executive chairman in 2003. In this role, he is responsible for setting the vision for the Dubai World Central development, which includes Al-Maktoum International airport and the Expo site. Together with Sheikh Ahmed al-Maktoum, president of the DCA, Al-Zaffin is heavily involved with the execution of the airport expansion plan. Al-Zaffin was also chairman of the DCA executive board from 2003 to 2004.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 814 1111

Gerald Lawless

Position: Chairman Jumeirah Group

Biography: Gerald Lawless joined Dubai-headquartered JumeirahGroup in 1997 as chairman after 23 years with the UK-based Forte Hotels Group. After opening the Jumeirah Beach Hotel in Dubai in 1997, Lawless was involved with launching the iconic Burj al-Arab hotel. In 2007, he was appointed executive chairman of the Jumeirah Group. Lawless is a graduate of the Shannon College of Hotel Management in Ireland. He also has an honorary degree in business administration in hospitality management from the Johnson & Wales University in the US. He is a member of the executive committee of the London-based World Travel & Tourism Council and a member of the UK’s Institute of Hospitality. Lawless is also chairman of the board of governors of the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management in Dubai. The Jumeirah Group manages 11 hotels in Dubai, London and New York, and is likely to open more ahead of 2020.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 366 5000

Ahmed Sultan bin Sulayem

Position: Executive chairman, Dubai Multi Commodities Centre Authority (DMCC)

Biography: Ahmed bin Sulayem has been executive chairman of DMCC since 2007 and is also chairman of the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX), a DMCC joint venture initiative to set up the first derivatives and commodities exchange in the region. Under his leadership at DMCC, the Jumeirah Lakes Towers freezone in Dubai has become the region’s leading hub for commodities trading. His achievements include establishing the Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) and the Dubai Pearl Exchange. The organisations he steers will help bolster economic growth in the run-up to the Expo. Sulayem began his career as a director for local property management firm Asteco in 2000. He joined DMCC as director when it was established in 2002 and was promoted to chief operating officer the same year. Sulayem became vice-president of DDE in 2006.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 424 9600

Jeffrey Singer

Position: CEO, Dubai International Financial Centre Authority (DIFCA)

Biography: Jeffrey Singer joined DIFCA in August 2012 as CEO, overseeing strategic development, operational management and administration, and international relations. As such, he will be helping to drive foreign investment in Dubai. Singer was previously CEO of Nasdaq Dubaifrom July 2008, managing its transition from the Dubai International Financial Exchange to the global Nasdaq platform, after Nasdaq OMX, which runs the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York, bought a one-third stake. Singer was previously senior vice-president at the Nasdaq OMX Group, where he was responsible for global business development. He has a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree in international finance from Brigham Young University, both in the US.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 361 2222

Saeed Mohammed al-Tayer

Position: Managing director and CEO, Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa)

Biography: Saeed Mohammed al-Tayer has been head of Dewa since 2004. He previously served as the authority’s general manager from 1992, and as general manager of Dubai Electricity Company, the government-run entity that was merged with Dubai Water Department to form Dewa. Al-Tayer has been a director at Dubai Bank and a board member at Dubai Aluminium (Dubal) since 2003. He was also selected as a board member for Emirates Aluminium from its formation in 2007. In March 2013, he was appointed as chairman of Dubal’s technical committee. Al-Tayer is a member of Dubai’s executive and economic councils, and chairman of the Dubai Infrastructure Committee, the Dubai Nuclear Committee and Empower. He will be responsible for ensuring electricity generation capacity keeps pace with demand in the run-up to 2020.

Contact Tel: (+971) 4 601 9999

Expo views

Abdulla Al-Karam Chairman, board of directors, and director-general, KHDA

In a short time, Dubai has successfully established itself as a leading global hub for business, finance, tourism and education. The Expo 2020 win will fuel further prosperity in the emirate, with huge developments expected in infrastructure, including across the education sector.

Creating more employment opportunities, the win will lead to a greater influx of expatriate workers. As a result of this growth, we anticipate an increased demand for high-quality education. In the next five years, we expect to see 70 new or expanded schools, providing places for a further 90,000 students across Dubai.

In terms of the higher education sector, we forecast a continuation of the healthy growth in student enrolments year-on-year.

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