Over the past two days in Dubai women from all over the world attended the Women in Leadership Economic Forum (WIL), it’s 9th edition, to convene under one roof and to learn from thought leaders and experts on various topics, but most importantly on its theme- “Daring to Build A Better Future.” WIL as it’s more often referred to is the largest female economic empowerment platform in the Middle East.

WIL was started by Sophie Le Ray, the CEO of Naseba. A natural entrepreneur, author and business facilitator, Sophie has 25+ years in producing and organizing business platforms. She oversees offices in the Middle East, India, Pakistan, China, the US and Europe. WIL is near and dear to her heart and was started with the intent to promote women’s economic empowerment around the world, while being diverse and inclusive.

The two-day forum was opened by Naseba Managing Director, Nicholas Watson. He later did a delegate-wide poll, asking women and the 10% of men in attendance if more men should be attending. The consensus from women delegates is that more men need to attend WIL and included in the conversations of issues that affect women.

The opening keynote was given by Dr. Mark Esposito, the Co-founder of Nexus FrontierTech, who got the audience thinking about why organizations still struggle to create inclusive workplace culture. Panel discussions ranged from topics related to diversity, including men into the conversation, connect-empower-cultivate, artificial intelligence, how to build solid teams, and migration.

Women working to make the world a better place, like Marianela Mirpuri engaged in a fireside chat with Hermoine Macura-Noble, TV anchor and problem solver for Straight Street Media. The Mirpuri Foundation is spearheading projects around the world from the arts, to social responsibility marine conservation, wildlife conservation and more.

But, it was the Future of Migration Panel moderated by Zahara Malik, CEO of Grosvenor Capital, with panelists Maysa Jalbout, Tenzin Seldon, Noëlla Coursaris Musunka, and Marie-Christine Nibagwire that engaged the audience to with applause, comments, and questions that didn’t seem to want to end. Migration is a factor that most all countries deal with and Tenzin stressed that refugees have skills and talents that can enrich the nations that they are displaced to. The women on the panel were all displaced at some point in their lives, so using their platforms, they are bringing attention to issues that affect migrants around the world.

Day Two

Day two’s panel on women entrepreneurs captivated the audience.  Women entrepreneurs are on the rise. In the US, there has been a 114% increase of women entrepreneurs in the last 20 years. Filling the panel was moderator Christine Grove, Co-founder of Studio Avviso; Lorna Johnson, entrepreneur, advocate, philanthropist, and ambassador; Sarah Bacon, CEO of We Share Property; Tenzin Seldon, founder of Kinstep; and Sarah Jones, CEO of Sprii.com.

Sarah Jones has grown exponentially in the GCC region from working in her pjs at her dining room table. She talked about delivering a 20% monthly growth in the Middle East, within the e-commerce mom and baby market. To date, has raised $13 million in funding for the company and has over 100 people working for her business.

Lorna Johnson is originally from Jamaica but immigrated to the US. “Entrepreneurship has taken on many forms, and I know a lot of people are creating apps and making money. But I believe the best entrepreneurs solve problems and scale solutions, as well as serve the population they benefit,” she said. Her father died when she was six, and it was her determination in track and field that got her to the Olympics, and has further helped her succeed as an entrepreneur. Guided by her faith and her mother’s teachings, Lorna shared how her work as a nurse, her philanthropic projects to help women in Jamaica and Africa, and to sitting on a board in the Obama administration has enabled her to make a difference as entrepreneur.

Breakout sessions from leadership, growing your Instagram, connecting effectively in communication, equal pay, financial literacy, personal branding, and working your network brought engaging discussion and new insights to delegates.

The WIL Forum is held every October in Dubai, and during other parts of the year conferences and forums are held in the GCC and Africa. Information about the WIL Forum can be found here.