BOARD OF TRUSTEES & FRIENDS
LOBNA HELAL
DEPUTY CHAIRWOMAN
AMAL MOWAFY
DEPUTY CHAIRWOMAN
SALMA EL-FAWAL
SECRETARY GENERAL
HANAN GIRGIS
TREASURER
REGIONAL AMBASSADORS FROM THE ARAB REGION WHO PROVIDE US WITH CONTINUOUS SUPPORT
MANAGEMENT & TEAM
Lobna helal
chairwoman, Womenovation Foundation
Lobna Helal is the current Chairwoman of City Edge Developments and a non-executive Board member at Telecom Egypt. She is the first woman ever to be appointed as Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt. Helal held several key positions at the National Investment Bank, Nasser Social Bank, and the Social Housing Fund. She was awarded the AFI Advocacy Champion Gender Award and appointed as Gender Ambassador. In 2016, Helal was selected among the Top 50 Most Influential Women in the Egyptian Economy. She was also ranked second most powerful woman in Forbes Magazine’s 100 Most Powerful Women in the Middle East and North Africa in 2016 and 2017, Helal holds a Master of Arts in Economics from the American University in Cairo. Her exceptional knowledge and expertise are an asset to Womenovation that will inspire our team and significantly contribute to improving the lives of our beneficiaries.
Salma elfawal
SECRETARY GENERAL, Womenovation Foundation
Salma Elfawal has over 18 years of experience in human rights and social development in Egypt.. She took the lead in project design, resource mobilization, strategic planning, and programme management. Salma is currently employed at UNICEF taking responsibility of the child protection portfolio both on the policy and programme levels. In her previous role as Development Cooperation Programme Manager at the Embassy of the Netherlands in Cairo, she managed diverse portfolios including women empowerment, gender equality, gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive health and rights, child protection, migration, access to justice, entrepreneurship, and financial inclusion.. Moreover, she wrote and published several studies on relevant international development best practices and the possibility of their adaptation in the Egyptian context. Salma holds a Master’s degree in Globalization and Development from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.
Amal mowafy
Deputy chairwoman, Womenovation Foundation
Amal Mowafy is the Chief of Party of USAID Egyptian Pioneers as well as an Adjunct Faculty Member at the Economics Department at the American University in Cairo. She is also a board member of Egypt Network for Integrated Development and a Trustee of Alkorra Foundation for Sustainable Development. With over ten years experience at ILO, her last assignment in Abidjan, she held the position of Regional Technical Specialist for Youth Employment in Africa. Prior to ILO, she worked three yearas with USAID and seven years at the Ministry of International Cooperation. Mowafy has two degrees with highest honors from the American University in Cairo: a Master in Public Administration and a Bachelor. in Economics. Mowafy received the ILO Centennial Recognition Award and selected as one of the Top 50 Most Influential Women in the Egyptian Economy in 2016 and two USAID on the Spot Cash Awards for developing US-Egyptian university partnerships.
Hanan Girgis
Treasurer, Womenovation Foundation
Hanan Girgis is the executive Vice President of the Egyptian Center for Research (Baseera). Apart from her managerial role, Girgis is one of the Baseera’s founders and is the mind orchestrating the Center’s success over more than a decade. She is internationally recognized as an expert in the field of public opinion and quantitative research. Her educational background includes a Bachelor’s degree, a Master and a Ph.D in Statistics from the faculty of Economics and Political science at Cairo University. Her ability to integrate her academic and practical experience in social and demographic research are evident in her valuable contributions in the National Strategy for Population and Development (2015-2020), the National Strategy for Women Empowerment (2030) and the National Strategy for Childhood and Motherhood (2015-2020).,
Shereen reda
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Shereen Reda is a leading Egyptian actress with popularity across the Arab region. She started her career in the advertising industry as a model with her first modelling experience at the age of 11. Her passion for fashion started at a very young age which made her study fashion in Los Angeles, In 1989, Following her return to Egypt, she starred “Fawazeer El Fonoon” a 30-episode riddle-based annual TV program aired during the month of Ramadan and known for highest viewership in the Arab region. The mid-nineties she started her first experience in the Film industry where she starred two films ”Nazwa” and “Hassan El Lol” with the late actor Ahmed Zaki. Refusing stereotypical roles of the innocent blond girl that she was offered, delayed her return till 2008 playing the role of a police officer in the movie “Ashraf Haramy”. Focusing on TV once more, she performed several roles in a variety of sitcoms and drama series until her return to the silver screen “Al Feel Azraq” in 2014. In 2015 she starred in the film ”Khareg Al-khedma” where she won the Best Actress Award at the 42nd Egyptian Cinema Film Association Festival. Followed by several distinguished performances, for her performance in “Al-Deif” she won the Excellence Award from the Egyptian Association of Film. Writers and Critics. Away from entertainment spotlights, Reda is known to be a strong advocate for animal rights and strong sense of social responsibility where she was selected as Ambassador for the Egyptian Autistic Society in 2019.
Magued osman
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Magued Osman, is a Professor of Statistics at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University. He is known regionally and internationally as a prominent expert in social statistics and public opinion research. Osman is the Chairman of Telecom Egypt (WE) and the Founder and CEO of Baseera, the Egyptian Center for Public Opinion Research, the first independent public opinion polling institution in Egypt. In 2011, he was appointed Minister of Communication and Information Technology, the first Minister after the 2011 Revolution. Prior to 2011, he held key positions including Director of the Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC), the thinktank of the Egyptian Cabinet of Ministers and also appointed Director of the Cairo Demographic Center. Osman had significant contributions in social, demographic and population research during his role as a research professor at the Social Research Center at the American University in Cairo. He is the current Chairman of WE (Telecom Egypt) and member of the National Council for Women (NCW). He is also the Vice Chairman of the Arab Union for Statisticians, member of the International Advisory Board (School of Global Affairs & Public Policy – American University in Cairo), member of the Board of Trustees at the French University in Egypt and member in the Board of Directors of Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper.
Mervat abou oaf
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Mervat Abou Oaf is a professor of practice and former chair of the Journalism and Mass Communication Department at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the American University in Cairo (AUC). She has been on the teaching highest students’ evaluation scale ever since she started her academic career at AUC in 1995. Abou Oaf earned a PhD from the University Autonoma, Spain, in the legislative, regulatory concentration on Egypt’s film industry. She is considered among the most prominent educators and trainers of mass communication in the Arab region. She is a trainer at the National Training Academy (NTA) in Egypt, a Directory Board Consultant to the Chamber of Cinema Industry (CCI) in Egypt and a member of the Foreign Press Association (FPA).. For over 15 years, Abou Oaf has been involved with Egypt’s National Council for Women (NCW), currently in the international cooperation portfolio. She is also a member of the Women and Memory Forum (WMF), an Egyptian non-profit established by female researchers and activists preoccupied with feminist studies. She has been a board member at "Awladna Foundation” and Peace Ambassador for Art and Culture by the Egyptian Center for World Peace and Human Rights.
Nardine farag
MEDIA AMBASSADOR, Womenovation Foundation
Nardine Farag is a multitalented actress, radio and TV presenter. Her career kicked off in 2008 as a radio presenter in the Egyptian radio station Nogoom FM. Her talent was quickly recognized by everyone, which paved the road to her appointment as a Director of the Egyptian radio station “Hits FM”. 2008 TV, she presented a women’s program tackling focus issues essential for Egyptian women. on OTV the third and fourth seasons of Arabs Got Talent Extra as well as “ET Bel Arabi”. Her talent and glamorous appearance was brought to everyone’s attention only to open acting opportunities for her. In 2016, she took a role in the drama series “Foq mostawa al shobohat”. Following this came roles in “Al-hisab Yigma’a” (2017), “Le’bet Newton” (2021), “Qasr el Nil” (2021) and the latest horror hit series “Room 207”. Her Egyptian features, education and charisma made her the perfect selection to present the historical ”Pharoah’s Golden Parade” where 22 mummies were transported from the Egyptian Museum to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization.
Nesreen el molla
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Nesreen El Molla is the Programme Manager for Civil Society Engagement at UN Women Headquarters; providing strategic support to civil society and youth organizations across the globe. She is an expert in programme management, monitoring and evaluation, partnerships, strategic planning, and gender-sensitive programming. She began her career at the Egyptian Cabinet of Ministers leading the International Cooperation Team which was a steppingstone to her career in international organizations. She was appointed as Manager for EU funded Twinning and Technical Assistance Programmes at the Ministry of International Cooperation. Following the EU, she entered the UN by heading the Monitoring & Evaluation Unit at the World Food Program (WFP) Country Office in Egypt. In 2017. El Molla later joined UN Women’s Regional Office for Arab States and recently transferred to UN Women Headquarters in New York. El Molla completed several international assignments in different capacities including development settings, refugee camp settings as well as host communities in Jordan, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq. She also supported women engagement and advocacy in intergovernmental spaces as well as women engagement in peace processes; including her support to the office of the UN Special Envoy to Syria. El Molla holds a Ph.D in Political Science from Cairo University with highest honors.
Samiha fawzy
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Dr. Samiha Fawzy is A Professor of Economics at Cairo University and appointed as Deputy Director of the Egyptian Center for Economic Studies (ECES), a leading public policy think tank. Dr. Fawzy has significant contributions to field of economic research making her a recognized expert in Egypt and the MENA region. In 2011, she was appointed Minister of Trade and Industry following the 2011 Revolution,. Prior to that, Dr. Fawzy was First Assistant to the Minister of Trade and Industry, and a board member of the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA), the Egyptian Bank for Exports Development ,the National Council for Women, and the General Authority for Investment. She has published extensively on various topics, including trade, industrial economics, investment theories, multinational corporations and corporate governance. Her contributions to the Womenovation Foundation in its very initial planning and conceptualization were quite significant. Furthermore, her passion and commitment to empower Egyptian women and promote local innovative projects make her the ideal resource expert to women’s economic empowerment. Dr. Fawzy earned her Ph.D in Economics from Cairo University in 1984.
Samira rashwan
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Samira Rashwan is a recognized expert in sustainable development and public policy. with over 10 years experience. She is currently appointed at the National Council for Women (NCW) actively involved in diverse domains and playing a crucial role on the strategic and implementation levels. She is the Technical Coordinator for the EU funded project “Increasing Women’s Participation in Public Life”. Rashwan is also a Peace and Security Consultant for UN Women. She earned a Master’s degree in International Law in 2014 from Ain Shams University and another Master in Development Cooperation from Ewha University in South Korea, which she completed in 2018. Throughout her career, she handled responsibilities of legal research, writing reports, coordinating development cooperation programmes/projects in the framework of sustainable development and gender equality. Moreover, Rashwan was selected many times to represent Egypt in international and regional conferences and forums.
Ghada barsoum
trustee, Womenovation Foundation
Ghada Barsoum is a tenured Associate Professor chairing the Department of Public Policy and Administration at the American University in Cairo (AUC). Barsoum has more than sixty publications including articles in reputable top peer-reviewed journals; technical reports, book chapters, encyclopedia entries, policy papers and a book on women's employment. Her publications and academic courses focus on issues pertaining to social policies in the Middle East, employment policies, green jobs, gender, and higher education policies. Barsoum has consulted for a number of organizations including the ILO, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNDP, UNICEF, GIZ and the World Bank. Prior to joining AUC, Barsoum was appointed as Research Associate at the Population Council, West Asia and North Africa Office, where she spearheaded efforts for a national survey on youth in Egypt. Barsoum earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of Toronto and a Master degree from AUC.
Walid osman
CEO, Womenovation foundation
Walid Osman is the CEO of the Womenovation Foundation and the one who initated the idea and conceptualized it. He started the concept development in late 2022 during his appointment as a Policy Specialist at a USAID Project (Economic Governance Activity) in Egypt. Osman is an expert in communications for development and perception studies and specifically perception of sustainable development issues. He began his career with a UNDP social marketing project focusing on children issues where he nationally coordinated mass media campaigns on FGM, child protection, child education and child labor. His success in the “Red Card to Child Labor” campaign during the African Cup of Nations made him the perfect candidate for his appointment asCommunications Officer at ILO’s Cairo Office. Moving to corporate communication, he moved to Starcom, part of Publicis Group Media (third largest globally) to manage all the brands of Mondolez and GlaxoSmithkline.. He was also appointed by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Public Diplomacy Officer, MENA besides teaching at the Political Mass Media Department at the Future University in Egypt. Osman earned a Master in International Media Studies from Deutsche Welle Academy, in Germany and finalizing a a PhD in International Communication from the Free University of Berlin. Osman was selected to represent Egypt in the fifth Managing Global Governance program over a period of six months in Germany.
Mariam waleed
INTERN, ENTREPRENEUR & VISUAL ARTIST WOMENOVATION FOUNDATION
Mariam Waleed studies Statistics at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University. Mariam is passionate about sustainable development, establishing a career in Statistics and above all she is a talented artist making her combination of interests unique and diverse. Mariam’s artwork was displayed in COP27 only indicating a portion of her potential. Mariam is currently emplyed by Baseera, supporting our Foundsation wiuthout forgetting her studies and able to excel academically.
HALA AGROUDY
INTERN, ENTREPRENEUR & VISUAL ARTIST WOMENOVATION FOUNDATION
Hala Agroudy is a graduating senior student at the Faculty of Commerce, Cairo University. She is an ambitious caliber with refined artistic taste. Her life as a student goes far beyond her academic studies. Very acvtive in. extracurricular activities, Hala’s creativity was witnessed on an international level when one of her artwork was selected for display at COP27. Never failing to amaze people around her, in the meantime she is setting up her own business.