Oman Business Forum

Qais bin Mohammed Al Yousef was appointed Minister of Commerce, Industry & Investment Promotion in 2020. Additionally, he serves as chairman of the SME Development Authority. Prior to assuming the role of minister, he was chairman of Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry and CEO of the Al Yousef Group. While heading the chamber, he served as deputy chairman of the Public Authority of Manpower Register and sat on a number of boards and committees. He holds a master’s in business management from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a BA in economics from Williams College. He has also attended executive development programs at Harvard Business School, London Business School and the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Ayşe Hazır is CEO and founder of The Business Year, a global media group that has been providing investors, businesses, and governments with first-hand insights into the world’s most dynamic markets for over a decade. Since founding the company, she has overseen the growth of operations across the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Having also successfully guided the company through the digital transition, she is now focusing on the expansion of coverage into Europe. Before founding The Business Year, Ayşe worked as Europe, Middle East and Asia Regional Director at Emerging Market Series, a London-based publishing house, from 2004 to 2009. Prior to that she was Project Director for Eastern Europe, where she coordinated research on countries targeting EU accession. At the start of her career, she also gathered extensive experience as a sectoral business intelligence project director in various geographies, from Oman to the Russian Federation and Indonesia, covering industries such as oil and gas, power, and chemical manufacturing. Ayşe holds a BA in chemistry from Istanbul Boğaziçi University and lives in London. She is a mother of two, a qualified yoga teacher, and an avid sailor.

Ammar Al Kharousi stands at the forefront of Oman's investment landscape as the CEO of InvestOMAN and the Director General of the Investment Services Center at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Investment Promotion. His journey through Oman's urban and tourism development sectors, including pivotal roles such as deputy chairman at Muscat Bay, head of development at OMRAN, and development director at Yiti Tourism Development Company, underscores a deep-seated commitment to sustainable growth. With a rich background spanning various development positions within OMRAN, Al Kharousi’s expertise now fuels his leadership in enhancing Oman’s investment environment, driving the nation's economic diversification and sustainable development efforts.

Bader Al Zaidi was appointed CEO of Vodafone in Oman in 2021, with almost two decades of experience working in ICT. He started his career with OmanTel, before moving to Oman Broadband, where he rose to become CEO in 2020. During his time at Oman Broadband, he represented the company as a board member of the FTTH MENA council and chaired the policy and regulations committee. Al Zidi holds a bachelor of applied science (BASc) and an MBA from the University of Strathclyde, UK. In addition, he has a certification in corporate finance and strategy from London School of Economics, UK, and a master of program management from George Washington University, US.

Mustafa Al Hinai serves as the CEO of the National Energy Center and holds the position of Chairman at Solar Wadi. Previously, he held the role of group CEO at Oman Aviation Group and established Tamkeen Investments. With over 22 years of experience, Al Hinai is a seasoned professional known for his adept leadership in implementing turnaround strategies across various sectors, ranging from established corporations to small and medium enterprises, as well as start-ups. His blend of business insight, analytical thinking, and entrepreneurial spirit enables him to drive innovative strategic initiatives, navigate organizational transformations, and revitalize struggling enterprises, positioning them for sustainable growth. Al Hinai holds an MBA from the University of Bedfordshire, UK.

Maqbool Al Wahaibi is the CEO of Oman Data Park, the first managed and cloud service provider in Oman. He has more than 25 years of diversified experience in ICT engineering, software development, business start-ups, and leadership. He holds a master’s degree in computer software engineering from the University of York, and an MBA from Strathclyde University, UK. He was named as Technology Person of the Year at the Annual AIWA Awards in 2018, which also gave Oman Data Park the award for Excellence in Global Cloud-Based Services in 2019. He was also named as one of the world's most inspiring CEOs for 2023 published by the renowned international magazine World's Leaders.

Khaled Jamal Al Kayed is the CEO of Bank Nizwa, Oman's first dedicated Islamic bank, with fully sharia-compliant products and services, offering an entire portfolio of commercial banking services.

Mansoor Al Abdali has 29 years of experience in the operations, maintenance, and engineering of oil and gas facilities, with skills in pipeline management. Prior to joining the company, he worked for 15 years at PDO, where he was in charge of the inspection and maintenance of all PDO assets and operational sites, including oil and gas pipelines and terminal facilities. He has led OQGN’s asset acquisitions of PDO and Madayn (PEIE).

Said Al Shanfari started his career in the telecommunication sector, with an eight-year tenure managing large-scale marketing projects for Omantel and Oreedoo. In 2017, he completed Oman’s National CEO Programme, which prepared the next generation of Omani leaders. Al Shanfari holds an MBA from the University of Hull and a double bachelor’s from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. He completed leadership courses from the London Business School and the IMD Business School and is an Associate Certified Coach.

The CEO of OQ8, David Bird epitomizes leadership within the regional and global energy sector. With over two decades in the oil and gas sectors, he has led large organizations across the energy value chain, encompassing operations, manufacturing, LNG, refining, petrochemicals, and logistics. Previously, he served as SVP of production operations and supply chain at Santos Ltd. At Shell, as vice president of Prelude FLNG, he led the world’s first floating LNG facility and chaired Shell Australia’s RAP Board. He was also head of operations at Pulau Bukom in Singapore, Shell’s largest refinery. He is a fellow of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers and holds an MBA from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business

Sultan bin Ahmed Al Wahaibi assumed his role as CEO of Oman Broadband in 2023. With over 20 years of experience in both the private and public telecommunications and information technology sectors, he has held multiple positions in the commercial divisions as the business sales general manager before being appointed chief business and wholesale officer of the Omani Qatari Telecommunication Company (Ooredoo). Al Wahaibi holds a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications engineering, with a minor in business from Carleton University, Canada. He also graduated from the executive education program from London Business School, the International Institute for Management and Development (IMD) at Switzerland, and Harvard Business Publishing. He is also a graduate of the National CEO Program, launched by the Diwan of Royal Court. He is an active member of the Oman Business Forum and a member of the Alumni Board of the Royal Academy of Management.

Paul Callaghan is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and holds a diploma in insurance from the Chartered Insurance Institute of London. He has over 34 years professional experience gained in the UK, UAE, and Oman, including more than 28 years in Oman. He is a partner in Moore Stephens LLC, where he heads the consulting and advisory services, and was previously a partner in a Big 4 firm. Callaghan attended the Moore Global Alumni Leadership Training course at Harvard Business School.

Ioana Krempanszky Popa is The Regional Director for Middle East for The Business Year, where she has been working for the past 6 years. She has successfully created partnerships with the worlds' largest entities in highly competitive markets, and lead teams to complete successful projects in several countries, such as the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Jamaica, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Nigeria. She graduated from the University of Vienna, Austria, with a Master's Degree in Cognitive Science, majoring in behavioral economics.

Silvia Lambiase is Senior Country Editor at The Business Year. She has wide-ranging experience working in economic analysis, media, business development, and marketing in various countries, including the UK, Nigeria, the UAE, Oman, and Kazakhstan. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international economic relations from La Sapienza University of Rome and an MSc in economics and finance from the University of Liverpool.