Harvard Arab Alumni Association holds 11th conference in Oman

Muscat: The Harvard Arab Alumni Association (HAAA) held its 11th annual Harvard Arab World Conference at the Shangri La Barr Al Jissah resort and spa in Muscat during the weekend, and brought together nearly 350 participants representing a diverse community of Harvard alumni, all sharing an interest for the renewal and development of the Arab world.
Titled “Innovation: Inspiring a New Arab World”, the conference explored a multitude of innovative initiatives emerging out of the Arab World and not only tackled topics of technology and the economic sphere, but discussed opportunities in the areas of education, arts, religion and policy. It also featured the first ever HAAA-sponsored startup pitch competition in the Arab World.
This year’s agenda featured a large number of distinguished speakers, including opening keynote addresses by HE Yusuf bin Alawi, Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs in the Sultanate of Oman and Mohammed bin Mahfoudh Al Ardhi, Executive Chairman of Investcorp and Chairman of the National Bank of Oman (NBO). HE Marc J. Sievers, the US Ambassador to Oman also delivered a welcome note.
Besides the welcome remarks, the event included five focused panels on ‘innovative Politics: Finding Common Grounds in Regional Conflicts’, ‘Building the Innovation Economy’, ‘Innovation in Arab Schools’, ‘Innovation in the Art and Culture’, ‘Intellectual Innovation: A New Islamic Narrative’, ‘Innovation & Entrepreneurship’.
These session were presented by expert panelists of related fields, over 25 speakers from across the Arab world and globally, including- H.E. Mr. Haidar Al Attas, Former Prime Minister of Yemen, Haya Al Ghanim, Director of Innovation, Qatar Science & Technology Park, Aimen bin Ahmed Al Hosni, CEO, Oman Airports Management Company, Maysa Jalbout, CEO of the Abdullah Al Ghurair Foundation for Education, Sheikh Mohammed Said Al Mamari, Advisor to the Minister of Endowments and Religious Affairs in Oman.
Ahmed T. el-Gaili (’03), President of the HAAA and Conference Co-Chair also added that “the HAWC is an opportunity to convene the next generation of thinkers in the region alongside accomplished leaders from a variety of fields. Through such events we hope to foster a constructive conversation around critical issues facing the Arab world.”
A day prior to the conference, an Admissions Information Session for students interested in applying to Harvard was conducted. In addition, the Khimji Ramdas Group signed a letter of intent with Harvard University announcing plans to set up a $250,000 scholarship fund for students from Oman who have enrolled in various graduate programs at Harvard.
The Harvard Arab Alumni Association (“HAAA”) was founded in 2001 with two primary objectives - to promote and strengthen the “Arab voice” at Harvard, and to build a strong network among Harvard alumni with an interest in the Arab world. Today, it reaches over 4,000 alumni and friends and supports a number of charities, scholarship funds and initiatives throughout the Arab world.
This was the first time in the history of this noted conference that it was held in Oman. Previous conferences have been held in Abu Dhabi, Amman, Cairo, Damascus, Doha, Dubai, Rabat and Tunis.