The ABLF Honours Outstanding Leaders In Its 12th Edition Dedicated To The Year Of Tolerance
In a befitting celebration that complements the ‘Year of Tolerance’, the 12th edition of the Asian Business Leadership Forum (ABLF) presented its prestigious ABLF Awards to visionary leaders from across Asia, who inspire and set high standards in leadership excellence.
The gala event was held at Jumeirah Emirates Towers in Dubai, under the Royal Patronage of H.H. Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Cabinet Member and Minister of Tolerance, UAE, and in official association with the UAE Ministry of Economy. The ABLF series, the flagship event of IEDEA, was launched in 2007 and is dedicated to the exceptional leaders and architects of modern Asia.
The ABLF Patron, H.H. Sheikh Nahayan said, “I offer our thanks to Malini Menon and her team at ABLF as well as the partners and special guests who have made the ABLF Forum a great success. Indeed, the diverse attendance of distinguished people here tonight clearly demonstrates the global outreach and influence of the ABLF.”
For the first time in 12 years, the leadership platform hosted a Guest Nation – India. Highlighting the strong bilateral relations between the UAE and India, and the event received a powerful delegation from India, which included a high-profile team from Madhya Pradesh, led by the Chief Minister H.E. Kamal Nath as well as private sector leaders.
H.E. Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri in his opening address at the ABLF said, “The rise of the UAE-born ABLF as a responsible and integrity-led leadership platform demonstrates the growing relevance of Asia as the power centre of global growth in the coming decades.”
The ABLF Awards were presented to 15 stalwarts of business and government by the Royal Patron which include:
The ABLF conferred the ABLF Statesperson Award to leaders from three Asian nations that are trailblazers in a new era of dynamic growth and prosperity. The sector of soft infrastructure, healthcare was in focus with H.E. Dr Tawfig Bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, Minister of Health, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. H.E. Eng. Suhail Faraj Al Mazrouei, Cabinet Member and Minister of Energy and Industry, UAE, under whose leadership the UAE has adopted and amplified Industry 4.0 while maintaining sustainable growth. One of the notable awards of the evening was for Indonesia’s Finance Minister, H.E. Dr Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who leads South-East Asia’s largest economy to greater financial stability.
The ABLF Global Asian Award to Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group, India and The ABLF Sustainable Leadership Icon Award was presented to Shobhana Bhartia,
Chairperson and Editorial Director, HT Media, India.
The ABLF Social Influencer Award was given to Ritu Prakash Chhabria, Managing Trustee, Mukul Madhav Foundation and Director, Finolex Industries, India. The ABLF Rising Star Award was conferred upon to Noor Sweid, Founder, Global Ventures, UAE, while The ABLF Social Humanitarian Award was given to H.E. Dr Tariq Al Gurg, CEO of Dubai Cares, UAE. H.E. Dr. Shaikha Al Maskari, Chairperson, Al Maskari Holding, UAE received The ABLF Outstanding Business Citizen Award.
The ABLF Outstanding Business Achiever Award was given to Jaidev R Shroff, Global CEO, UPL Limited, India and The ABLF Trailblazer Award was conferred upon to Rajat Sharma, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief, India TV, India.
Madhusudan Agrawal, Co-founder and Vice Chairman, Ajanta Pharma Ltd, India and B.K. Goenka, Chairman, Welspun Group, India, were presented with The ABLF Business Innovator Award and ABLF Business Courage Award respectively.
The ABLF Lifetime Achievement Award was received by Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO, Dubai Duty Free, from the UAE and from India, Dr Cyrus Poonawalla, Chairman and Managing Director, Serum Institute of India.
An exclusive audience of 250 high-profile dignitaries and Asia’s leading business leaders attended the ceremony. The VIP delegates included: H.E. Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Cabinet Member and Minister of Economy, UAE; H.E. Suhail Mohamed Faraj Al Mazrouei, Cabinet Member and Minister of Energy and Industry, UAE; H.E. Dr Maitha Salem Al Shamsi, Minister of State, UAE; H.E. Eng Mohammed Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz Al Shihhi, Undersecretary, Economic Affairs, Ministry of Economy, UAE; and H.E. Dr Tariq Al Gurg, CEO, Dubai Cares, among others.
“I thank the ABLF for recognising the UAE Ministry of Energy and Industry’s efforts to build a true and long-term relationship with the Business Leaders Community. We need to enhance and empower Public-Private-Partnerships (PPP) to be able to prosper and lead the region and be an integral part of the world economy”. -H.E. Eng Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei, Cabinet Member and Minister of Energy and Industry, UAE
H.E. Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO, DP World, the ABLF Presenting Partners, “The UAE and India enjoy long-standing and cordial relations across multiple fronts. India is at the heart of DP World’s global growth strategy. We’ve substantial investments in India and Indian companies account for a large share of total investments into Jafza. We have made strong progress in building an integrated logistics platform across India, which can deliver competitive solutions to the country’s vibrant logistics sector and we aim to continue adding scale to our offering to deliver greater efficiencies and value to the trade. The India-UAE Bridge is a significant part of strengthening the strategic partnership between our two countries. The Asian Business Leadership Forum provides an ideal platform to showcase our efforts.”
“I thank the ABLF for recognising the Aditya Birla Group’s contribution to the Global economy. This honour is particularly special as it comes close on the heels of our Group celebrating 50 years of our global presence. Through the course of this journey, we have seen an irreversible shift in the World’s Economic Centre of gravity to Asia. I am confident that the next decade will see the emergence of India as an economic superpower, and we hope to play our part in making that happen.” said Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group, India.
“It is an honor to receive the ABLF Award. I wish to thank the Grand Jury and the ABLF Team for this honour. This year’s theme of Inclusive Leadership for Sustainability of Progress is especially close to my heart. At Samta Foundation, we are working tirelessly to bring those excluded from our societies back into the mainstream. This award is a great recognition and motivation for me and for our entire team.” said Madhusudan Agrawal, Co-Founder and Vice Chairman, Ajanta Pharma Ltd, India.
Malini N. Menon, Co-Founder of the ABLF, said “This year we celebrated 12 years of ABLF and of successfully connecting the UAE and the nations of Asia. Under the theme of Inclusive Leadership, the edition has echoed the voice of the UAE and taken the narratives of tolerance, technology, AI, Gender Parity and the Well -nation agenda to a global audience through the new TV Series – the ABLF Talks launched alongside the Awards on CNBC Arabia. The edition of ABLF that includes the Awards presents the ABLF Talks, taking the influence of the ABLF to a global audience. The Awards continue to honour exemplary leaders in various fields and sets the standards for competitiveness, performance and development.”
The event also paid tribute to the founding fathers of the UAE and India – H.H. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and Mahatma Gandhi. A stunning exhibition was curated by the Four Seasons Ramesh Gallery showcasing rare paintings, artefacts and photographs of the two global icons of tolerance and inclusiveness and the launch of issue 2 of the India-themed ABLF Magazine, dedicated to these icons was also featured.
