Tristar Celebrates International Women’s Day
Tristar Group hosted an women-led event to mark International Women’s Day, focussing on female empowerment and leadership in the digital era, and mirroring the United Nations’ theme, DigitALL.
“Gender equality sits at the centre of today’s major challenges: energy transition, climate change, public health, food security, water scarcity, supply chain issues, and sustainability,” Eugene Mayne, Founder and Group CEO of Tristar, observed in his opening remarks. “Involving women will address these issues more effectively and equitably.”
“Every small marker has the potential to become a milestone in raising gender parity – in a company, in a country, in society,” he said. “Whatever we do today is well worth the effort to define and to deliver a better tomorrow for generations to come.”
A distinguished roster of female speakers addressed the audience on gender balance. Keynote speaker Habiba Al Marashi, Chairperson of Emirates Environmental Group (EEG), highlighted the imperative to tend to shortcomings in the modern workplace: childcare and nursing facilities, adequate maternity leave and equal pay. She spoke of her decade-long interactions with Tristar as a sterling example of good governance through their continuous actions on educating and empowering women in the countries and territories they operate in. Tristar has been a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) since 2011 and the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEP) since 2019.
Guest speaker Samira Mohamed, Managing Director of Dubai Quality Group (DQG), cited the women of the UAE as a sterling example for empowerment. She showcased their rising success in education, emergency medicine, the space sector, and emerging sciences, through videos and audience engagement activities.
In an hour-long panel discussion, women leaders spoke about the gender-based challenges plaguing their respective industries, and the corporate world at large. They also opined on realistic solutions to ease or mitigate them, ranging from better representation in the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) sectors and tech-industry jobs, to quotas or special reservations, and mentoring for women by women.
The panel comprised of Shurooq Al Banna – an Emirati humanitarian professional, Dr. Sangeeta Sharma – a CSR and sustainability professional, Noha Hefny – CEO and Founder of The People of Impact, and Daxita Rajcoomar – Chief Sustainability Officer at ENGIE. The discussion was moderated by Jasmin Fichte, English and German solicitor, and Managing Partner of Fichte & Co.
The speakers also highlighted improvements in gender parity as a response to higher standards of ESG (environment, social and governance) and DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) for companies, and how these are interlinked to greater global challenges.
The overarching message of the event was a call for more private sector action in the UAE – to create better balance in the digital workplace of the future, and to promote the many roles women can play in resolving global crises.