Sheikha Lubna headed the Dubai e-government team responsible for instituting e-government initiatives through the public sector in 2001
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| ‘SHARP AS A TACK’: UAE’s bright and charming economy minister Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi in Dubai earlier in March. “There was a lot of misinformation on the Dubai ports deal,' she says. (REUTERS) |
Oh, yes, you did read correctly, it is indeed a "her" who came to Washington to ensure smooth continuity of relations between the United States and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
She is Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, minister of economy of the UAE and the first woman in the history of the UAE to assume a full cabinet position. She was given the position in November 2004 to manage the newly merged ministries of economy and planning.
Unlike what one might imagine, she arrived in Washington with no axe to grind, and full of good intentions and an amazingly open mind, and that despite the mega-million dollar loss on the Dubai Ports World transaction.
"We have to find out what are the lessons learned," she told United Press International during an interview in Washington, on Tuesday.
Are there no hard feelings? "No," she replied without hesitation. "We are long-standing allies of the United States. Our relations are larger than that. This is global trade."
The UAE minister of economy explained that her country has a long and strong history of trade with the United States. "We are in the top five, after Saudi Arabia and Israel," she said. US exports to the UAE run in the order of $8.4 billion a year.
"These are two nations that need each other," she said of her country and the United States. The Emirates has ordered 80 F16 e/f combat aircrafts from the United States at a cost of some $6.4 billion.
Emirates Airlines, one of UAE's national carriers, has placed an order with Boeing for $20 billion. "Every $1 billion spent in the United States," explained the minister, "means 10,000 American jobs".
"And every job really means security for three, four or five people - an entire family," added an aide.
The only negative reference to the Dubai ports deal that she made was saying that "Someone misjudged. That's what happens when you have politicians getting involved in business."
Nevertheless, the minister takes a philosophical approach: "There was a lot of misinformation on the Dubai ports deal," Sheikha Lubna said. Many in the media made it sound as though Dubai would be controlling the entire port operations in the six US ports that the company would have acquired. "It's nothing like that, she said. "Port operations means people moving boxes."
Still, despite the setback, the US and the UAE have strong relations in business and defense, the minister said. "You did not see any hostility toward Americans in the UAE where about 50,000 Americans live and work."
Dubai is the largest "liberty" port in the Gulf area, meaning it is where US sailors serving on ships in the Gulf are allowed ashore for rest and recreation. There have been over 600 calls by US Navy ships in Dubai and nearby Fujayrah city.
Prior to becoming minister, Sheikha Lubna, a young, pleasant, modern-looking woman with a wit sharp as a tack, was chief executive officer of Tejari, an electronic business-to-business marketplace.
A handout given to the press with her biographical statistics quotes her as saying: "I see myself as a change agent for youth to seek technology as a vehicle for development, for women to aspire to serve our society to grow and prosper. For the world to seek better understanding of Muslims and Arab culture."
That is the official party line. During an interview with UPI, she described herself simply as a "techie".
Sheikha Lubna is the perfect weapon to counter the negativism generated by the Dubai Ports fiasco for several reasons. She is intelligent, sharp and charming - proof that not all the people from Dubai are in cahoots with Osama Bin Laden, as some people in Washington would like us to believe. Her command of the English language is impeccable, and she could easily pass for an American. She earned her Bachelor in Science from California State University at Chico, and an Executive MBA from the American University of Sharjah.
But prior to running Tejari, she was appointed senior manager of the information systems department at Dubai Ports Authority, a position that she held for more than seven years. And prior to that, she was placed in charge of computerizing the federal government of the UAE. In 2001 Sheikha Lubna was given the task of heading the Dubai e-government team responsible for instituting e-government initiatives through the public sector.
She is resolute not to allow the ports incident to hamper relations between her country and the United States as she looks to the future, rather than dwelling on the past. "We're merchants at heart," she said.
posted by Unknown @ 9:40 AM
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