Q & A with Afnan al Shuaiby; Secretary-General and Chief Executive of the Arab British Chamber

London, Asharq Al-Awsat- Dr. Afnan Abdullah Mansour al Shuaiby is the first woman to occupy the post of Secretary-General of the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce since it was established in 1975. Dr. Afnan, from Saudi Arabia, embarked on her position in London last July coming from Washington where she was an adviser to the chairman of the US-Saudi Arabian Business Council since 1998. Well-experienced in the business world, Dr. Afnan al Shuaiby had also joined the Abu Dhabi Investment Agency in Washington in 1996 as an adviser.

Asharq Al-Awsat interviewed Afnan al Shuaiby at the Chamber’s headquarters in central London.

The interview proceeded as follows:

Q: You are both the first woman and the first Saudi to occupy the position of Secretary-General of the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce. Would you tell us how you were nominated and selected for this position?

A: Last year the Chamber called upon the Arab states to select candidates to fill the position of the Secretary-General and Chief Executive. Saudi Arabia nominated me, which is an honor for me, to be the first woman to run for this position. The process of nominating began and took several months. The Chamber then selected the qualified individuals from more than one country. This position was destined for me and this is due to the continuous efforts and support of the Saudi Chamber of Commerce and the Saudi Ambassador to the United Kingdom and Ireland, Prince Mohammed Bin Nawaf, who is always supportive of the Chamber and anything related to Saudi-British commercial relations.

Q: You are a real example that contradicts the erroneous stereotype for some in the West of Saudi women being unproductive. What is your comment on this?

A: On the contrary, Saudi women are very successful; perhaps I have been placed in the spotlight by virtue of this position. However, there are many successful, talented and well-educated Saudi women, some of whom are renowned and others are still on the way up. In addition, we enjoy all the support that can be gained. In some way, our success is blacked out by the West’s outlook on Saudi women in particular and Arab women in general.

Q: How does the visit of King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz and other Arab leaders in general impact your activity?

A: Naturally, these visits increase significantly the importance of what we are doing and give us greater value because such visits indirectly support us as people become more interested in the country of the visiting leader or king. Recently, we have been contacted a lot and there have been enquiries about King Abdullah’s visit and people have been asking about how they can meet with concerned persons or take part in special activities to get to know Saudi Arabia.

Q: What is your plan for developing the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce?

A: A few days ago, we held the meeting of the board of directors during which a six-month plan was drafted. In my capacity as the new Secretary-General of the Chamber, there are many challenges. Despite the excellent strategy that is currently pursued by the Chamber with the exceptional existing team, it was necessary to change some policies in order to be in keeping with what is taking place around us. We are now in 2007, a lot is happening in our region, specifically in the Gulf Cooperation Council [GCC] states and there are many British companies that are enthusiastic about investing in that region. Our responsibility is to represent that region to these companies and vice versa as we are working with both parties. We will do more to modernize the foundations of the Chamber and to keep it up-to-date with the mechanisms of this age. We will focus on the activities in particular because they play a leading role in building acquaintances. We will also work towards having the largest possible number of members, certainly, alongside the services provided mainly by the Chamber.

Q: So you are seeking to attract more British investment to Arab countries and attract Arab investment to Britain simultaneously?

A: Yes, we are playing a dual role.

Q: There are many challenges to such a role, perhaps not so much for bringing Arab investments to Britain, but the challenge of propagating a productive region that lacks proper marketing on the one hand, or the problem of the large number of countries having security and political problems in our region on the other. What is your opinion on this?

A: We are going to conduct more research on these countries. Every country in the region is important to us, but the fact is that some are more active than others and this is what interests the British investor. For example, we are now focusing on Saudi Arabia for a simple reason, namely, the visit of HRH Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz to Britain. Many are enthusiastic about the results of this visit. Therefore, we have recently organized a special event under the banner of “New Opportunities in Saudi Arabia” attended by the Saudi Ambassador to Britain, Prince Mohammed Bin Nawaf and British businessmen who have shown an interest. This is an example of what we do. After conducting our research on the countries of the region, we illustrate our findings to businessmen here and tell them about what these countries have to offer by bringing them together in special conferences and events or ordinary meetings. We will hold a series of conferences that will begin next January; one of which will be on the financial sector, water, education and energy. These conferences are important and host high-profile speakers, which will be announced in due time.

Q: Some may be concerned about the fact that you are Saudi and may have more inclination towards Saudi Arabia than other countries. What is your response to such concerns?

A: I am inclined to a lucrative trade, whether it is in Saudi Arabia or any other country. This is my job and I have to perform it faithfully. There is no doubt that Saudi Arabia is important to me because I am Saudi, but it is also important to me in my work because it is a source of many opportunities. My duty is to explain what these opportunities are and this is exactly what I am doing with the rest of the Arab countries and no one country has any personal privilege at the expense of another. My nationality is irrelevant to that matter.

Q: You were an adviser to the chairman of the U.S.-Saudi Arabian Business Council in Washington. What of those teachings from the American experience will you bring to your new post; especially that the US is the largest commercial partner to Saudi Arabia at present?

A: Without doubt, I have benefited from my experience in the United States, which is of course a strategic partner to Saudi Arabia. This does not mean that the United Kingdom is less important, the fact is that the system is somewhat different here, but each one has an idiosyncrasy in business and each one is aware of the importance of historical relations with Saudi Arabia. I had my experience in America and I have just started here. I can say that British companies are very keen to invest in the Arab world, especially Saudi Arabia, which received direct foreign investments amounting to $18.3 billion in 2006, with an increase of 51% in comparison to the previous year, according to the United Nations statistics. This, undoubtedly, stands for many things, but we are acting to increase these figures not only with regard to Saudi Arabia but for all Arab countries. On the other hand, we also want to bring Arab companies to Britain. We are particularly focusing on smaller-scale businesses. There is much interest in these companies from both parties.