JEDDAH, 27 February 2008 — The agenda of the final session of the 9th Jeddah Economic Forum included some new names that were not on the program. Attendees were expecting a speech from George Soros, founder and chairman of the Open Society Institute. Instead Mark Selby, vice president of Multimedia Nokia Corporation, delivered a speech under the theme: “Landscaping the Future: Who Should Take the Lead?”
Selby expressed delight that Nokia phones are widely used in the Kingdom and spoke of his company’s success as a role model for other businesses. While some companies change their organization structure when things go wrong, Nokia changes when things also go right and employees are continuously given new roles. “We hire smart people. We are conscience of learning new competencies,” he said.
Another speaker was Hayat Sindi, a visiting scholar from Harvard University, who shared with the audience the story of her success. Sindi, who was born in Makkah, was supported by her family to pursue her dream to become a scientist. She studied pharmacology at King’s College, London and underwent a PhD at the Institute of Biotechnology at Cambridge University. “I am working on linking the world of academia to the world of industry, breaking boundaries between the East and the West, and helping people of different ages and cultures,” she said.
In response to a request from a member of the audience for advice to businessmen and young Saudi women, Sindi said she is upset at Saudi businessmen. “In science and technology, we need to have a vision. I would like to ask businessmen what is it they want to achieve. Is it making money? If this is the case then this is not business, this is selfishness. They have to give a chance to the younger generation to be creative and provide them with a better world,” she said, adding that she advises people to just follow their dream and like what they are doing and what they want to be.
Between the two speeches, Jeddah Governor Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, along with Saleh Al-Turki, chairman of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), honored the National Commercial Bank for winning the Corporate Social Responsibility Award for Banks.