Forbes: 7 Moroccans Listed among 100 Power Businesswomen in Middle East

Seven Moroccan women have been listed by Forbes Mazagine among the Middle-East’s 100 power businesswomen.

They have worked their way up during their professional career to reach the top of their professions.

The seven Moroccan women cited in the Forbes 2020 listing are Nezha Hayat, Head of Morocco’s capital market authority (ranked 7th), Laila Mamou, Director of subsidiaries at Crédit Agricole, (20th), Salwa Idrissi Akhannouch, CEO of Aksal Group, (22nd), Rita Maria Zniber, CEO of Diana Holding (32nd), Nadia Fassi Fihri, Chief of Inwi (36th), Lamia Tazi, Director of Sothema (57th) and Miriem Bensaleh Chakroun, CEO of Eaux Minérales Oulmès (58th)
In the Forbes 2020 list, there are 22 new entries and 23 nationalities represented across 28 sectors.

Emiratis are the most prevalent nationality with 23 entries. There are also nine Egyptians, eight Lebanese and eight Omani women. British women have the highest representation among non-Arabs.

The top 10, which includes Moroccan Nezha Hayat, is dominated by Saudis, with three of the country’s biggest names in the top five: Samba Financial Group’s Rania Nashar, Tadawul’s Sarah Al Suhaimi and Saudi British Bank’s Lubna Olayan.

The majority (79) of the 100 women are self-made, 16 of whom have started their own businesses, and 21 women work in their family businesses, with many of them starting out when it was rare to find women in the workplace. There are 21 women from the banking and financial services sector, including four from stock exchanges and financial regulators.