French Embassy highlights women’s leadership in Kuwait’s energy and finance sectors

By Shouq Al-Mulla
Special to The Times Kuwait

The Embassy of France in Kuwait hosted a high-level discussion titled ‘Inspiring Stories, Powerful Voices: Women Shaping Energy and Finance,” bringing together leading personalities from Kuwait’s energy and financial sectors for an evening dedicated to women’s leadership and participation in strategic industries.

Held at the French Residence, the session convened executives, entrepreneurs, and diplomatic partners committed to advancing gender inclusion and broadening pathways for women in this important sector. The discussion highlighted recent progress in Kuwait while acknowledging that barriers to leadership and decision-making still shape women’s experiences in fields traditionally dominated by men.

Speaking on the occasion, the French Ambassador to Kuwait, H.E. Olivier Gauvin, underscored the importance of platforms that recognize women as essential contributors to strategic and economic advancement. He noted that the trajectories of Kuwait’s women leaders serve as powerful examples for younger generations and thanked both women participants and male allies who support equal access to professional opportunity and representation.

The session was the second in a continuing series launched by the embassy, following an earlier roundtable in November dedicated to combating violence against women. The format aims to foster dialogue, exchange expertise, and expand cooperation on gender-related issues, with additional engagements expected in the coming period.

The initiative forms part of France’s broader commitment to a feminist foreign policy, officially adopted in 2019, making it one of the earliest countries to formalize gender equality as a priority across diplomatic, development, and multilateral engagements. France later launched its International Strategy for a Feminist Foreign Policy 2025–2030 to operationalize that commitment.

The strategy seeks to defend rights and freedoms, expand women’s participation in decision-making, address gender inequalities and violence, mobilize financing for equality, and embed a feminist methodology across state institutions. It aligns with international frameworks including CEDAW, the Beijing Platform for Action, and UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. Through its Support Fund for Feminist Organizations, more than 1,400 civil society groups in 75 countries have received assistance since 2020.

The event featured contributions from prominent Kuwaiti figures including Sara Akbar, Chairperson and CEO of Oilserv Kuwait Joint Venture and a pioneer in Kuwait’s energy sector recognized internationally for her role in extinguishing Kuwait’s oil well fires following the 1991 Iraqi invasion; Shayma Amin, Team Leader for Project Assurance at the Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) and former officer at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Vienna; Shaima Bin Hussain, Founder and CEO of She Invest for Economic and Management Consultancy; and Dalal Al Rayes, Founder and CEO of Spare, an emerging open-banking financial technology platform.

The discussion also reflected a growing alignment between France and Kuwait on women’s empowerment. In Kuwait, women’s participation has become an increasingly visible component of national development priorities. Under New Kuwait Vision 2035, efforts to diversify the economy and strengthen human capital have been accompanied by initiatives that encourage women’s entry into the workforce, entrepreneurship, and leadership roles, particularly in finance, technology, and the private sector, areas that continue to shape Kuwait’s future economy.

Ultimately, the gathering underscored a shared understanding that sustainable progress requires not only sound policy and institutional support but also environments in which women can participate fully, access opportunities, and contribute to strategic decision-making across sectors. As empowering women and making space for their voices is essential for innovation, competitiveness, and long-term national development, ensuring that women are not only present in the economy, but also heard, valued, and able to prosper in all fields.