UAE women delegation leaves Sweden

A delegation of 16 female senior level managers from the UAE are scheduled to travel to Sweden next week to participate in the 2nd edition of the Women Leadership Exchange Program (WLEP). Organized by Dubai Women Establishment (DWE), in collaboration with Women 4 Sustainable Growth and MiL Institute, the Women Leadership Exchange Program is a unique management leadership program created to expedite knowledge sharing on methods for sustainable and participatory leadership. The first part of the program comprises of an overseas excursion to Klippan and Malmo in Sweden, from 25th August 2013 to 1st September 2013, in an effort to expose the participants to research on leadership, cross-cultural communication and sustainability. On the occasion, Hessa Tahlak, Director of Development and Research in Dubai Women Establishment, said: "The WLEP program reflects Dubai Women Establishment ongoing efforts to boost the potential of the Emirati working woman through the exchange of knowledge and experience between high-level Swedish and Emarati women leaders and expand exchanges between organizations, think tanks and universities on gender equality and sustainable leadership practices." Tahlak added, "Learning from the feedback and comments of last year's participants, we have further developed this year's program to maximize the pursuit of cross-cultural collaborations to build the capacity of women professionals with the support of corporate and academic leaders in both countries. Our 2013 participants can look forward to an engaging agenda in Sweden which will excite and challenge them to improve themselves as well as expand their knowledge." This distinctive exchange program will include 16 female senior level managers with 5-10 years of management experience, selected from different public and private organization. Explicitly designed to provide UAE women leaders the extraordinary opportunity to represent their nation and also experience relationship-building and sustainable leadership techniques, this program will work with each participant to explore their personal objectives as well as help identify their areas for improvement and progress. Over the course of the program, which will comprise of two phases - the first held in Sweden and a follow up session held in the UAE, between Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah, from January 17 to 23, 2014 - ladies have a chance to engage with their Swedish counterparts to explore new methods to facilitate innovation, foster engagement with new research and above all, develop into a strong and innovative leader. Thereby also resulting in a network of experienced and supportive female professionals who have graduated from previous batch of the WLEP program. During their stay in Klippan, Sweden, the event agenda will include the exploration of crucial subjects such as leadership and organization theories as well as discussions on sustainable and female leadership. Moreover, they will also partake in an important exercise in mind-mapping their reality and personal goals. In Malmo, Sweden, ladies will visit innovative business centers and organization, in order to gain further exposure to new and creative business and professional ideas. The pioneering initiative supports one of DWE's key objectives, which is to enhance Emarati women's skills and competencies in order to meet the nation's needs and achieve the UAE's strategic priority for gender-balanced development. The program aims to mold women who demonstrated great potential and passion in their positions into fully-fledged social and business leaders and long-term agents of change.