Swiss Business Council Awards DHA’s CEO

Emirati Dr. Manal Mohammad Omran Taryam Al Shamsi Consultant & Chief Executive Officer of Primary Healthcare Services Sector (PHSS) at Dubai Healthcare Authority (DHA) received the prestigious Lady of the Matterhorn award by the Dubai & Northern Emirates charter of the Swiss Business Council (SBC) during SBC’s annual gala dinner event last week.

The decision to award the biennial accolade to Dr. Manal Mohammad Omran Taryam Al Shamsi was taken unanimously by SBC’s 11-member Executive Committee due to her ongoing support to the success of the Council as well as for her long-standing contribution to Dubai’s primary healthcare sector including family medicine, community medicine, dentistry and specialised services such as child health, elderly health, preventive medicine, and women’s health. She is also heading the healthcare and rehabilitation task-force at the Dubai Disability strategy aiming to make the Emirate of Dubai disability friendly by 2021.

She was also recognised for her philanthropic work as a trustee member and Chief Executive Officer of the Noor Dubai Foundation, an NGO specialising in prevention of blindness globally. The charity provides long-term programmes to help eradicate blinding diseases in Africa and Asia.

She is the first woman to receive the Matterhorn Award, an initiative of the SBC which has previously awarded H.E. Hamad Buamim, President and CEO of Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, H.E. Engineer Essa Al Haj Al Maidoor, former Director General of Dubai Health Authority and H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al Tayar, Managing Director & CEO of DEWA.

Dr. Manal Mohammad Omran Taryam Al Shamsi received the Lady of the Matterhorn award from the ambassador of Switzerland to the UAE, Mrs Maya Tissafi, one of many dignitaries, UAE government officials and senior business executives who were among the 300 guests at the event.

Peter Harradine, President of the Swiss Business Council Dubai & Northern Emirates said: “Women are at the forefront of the UAE’s success and global reputation as a forward-thinking and progressive nation and play an important role in the fabric of the nation representing 46.6 per cent of the labour force. We are proud to live and work in a country that has a clear vision and sustainable goals for women empowerment and this year’s Lady of the Matterhorn award aligns with the national strategy for empowerment of Emirati women for the years 2015-21.”

Dr Taryam holds an MBBS in Medicine from the Dubai Medical College, the German board from the University of Cologne and a fellowship in Vitereo-retinal surgery. She is the recipient of many awards including the Sheikh Rashid Award for Academic Excellence and the Dubai Government Excellence Programme Award 2006 for Distinguished Female Employee category.

The 2018 SBC Gala Dinner was held at the Westin Hotel Mina Seyahi and sponsored by E&S Luxury Car Rentals, Jashanmal Group, King’s College Hospital-Dubai, Leidar, LGT, Orient Irrigation Services, R&M, Switzerland Tourism, Swiss International Air Lines, SwissCanonica and Zermatt Tourism, home to the famous Matterhorn mountain.

Caption: Dr. Manal Mohammad Omran Taryam Al Shamsi received the Lady of the Matterhorn award from the ambassador of Switzerland to the UAE, Mrs Maya Tissafi alongside Peter Harradine, President of the Swiss Business Council Dubai & Northern Emirates.