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Rania Nashar Wins the Distinguished Arab Woman Award in Economics, Banking for Year 2020

Rania Nashar Wins the Distinguished Arab Woman Award in Economics, Banking for Year 2020
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Rania Nashar Wins the Distinguished Arab Woman Award in Economics, Banking for Year 2020

Rania Nashar Wins the Distinguished Arab Woman Award in Economics, Banking for Year 2020

The Arab Women Authority announced its choice of Ms. Rania Nashar for the Distinguished Arab Woman Award in the field of economics and banking for the year 2020, culminating her successful career and distinguished achievements in the Arab banking and economic activity, and in recognition of her solid willpower and ability to contribute to the development of the Saudi economy.

Ms. Rania Nashar, CEO of Samba Financial Group, expressed her pride in receiving the Distinguished Arab Woman Award in the field of economics and banking for the year 2020 from the Arab Women Authority, an Arab non-governmental organization concerned with empowering the role of Arab women in the development of Arab societies and enhancing their activity. Ms. Nashar becomes the first Arab woman to win this award in this field since its launch by the Arab League in 2004.

“This award adds a new responsibility and drives me to exert more efforts in representing Arab women in a manner that suits their capabilities and befits their stature,” Nashar was quoted as saying, expressing her thanks and appreciation to the award jury for this trust, which is a tribute to Arab women in general.

The Distinguished Arab Woman Award is the most important Arab award to honor Arab women who are distinguished in various fields of work and creation. The award aims to introduce the achievements of Arab women in various fields of work, and document their scientific and practical achievements to highlight the artistic, cultural, scientific and economic innovations of the Arab women and display a bright image of them in regional and international forums by presenting pioneering and creative models of Arab women who had firm imprints in various business sectors.

Dr. Russell Al-Nuaimi, the official spokeswoman of the Arab Women Authority, said: “Ms. Nashar’s winning of this award, which is the most important Arab award presented to distinguished Arab women, organized in cooperation with the League of Arab States, marks her as the first Arab woman to receive this award in the field of economics and banking”.

Dr. Russell indicated that this award culminates in the established track record of Ms. Nashar amidst many challenges.

“With her professionalism, determination, and dedication, she was able to surpass those challenges, recording a clear imprint and a prominent presence in the Saudi banking industry through her unrivaled success in the position of Samba Financial Group’s CEO, in addition to assuming many financial and banking positions armed with competence, scientific qualification, practical experience and determination to succeed and excel in this extremely difficult and complex field where fewer women have assumed leadership posts in it” Dr. Russell added.

“The Jury and the Board of Trustees expressed great commendation and appreciation for the journey of a self-made Arab woman armed with education, knowledge, and training in order to take over the management and leadership of a leading banking and financial institution in her country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with complete excellence and integrity, thus reflecting the success of Saudi women and their evolving role in contributing to the labor market and participation in nation-building, embodying the Vision 2030 of the Saudi Crown Prince, His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which gave a strong impetus and a great motivation for underscoring the importance of Saudi women’s effective engagement and influence in various fields of work and production,” says Dr. Russell.

The official spokeswoman of the Arab Women Authority concluded her statement by greeting Ms. Rania Nashar on her bridging between leadership work and the corporate social responsibility in supporting community development initiatives and backing activities that elevate the image of women and improve their living conditions.

Ms. Rania Nashar is the first Saudi woman to hold the position of CEO of a Saudi bank, with more than 22 years of experience in banking. In addition to her position as CEO of Samba Financial Group, she holds the position of Deputy Chairman of Samba Capital, the investment arm of the group. In addition to membership in the boards of directors of Samba Bank Limited in Pakistan, Samba Global Markets Ltd., and the Institute of International Finance, and to being a member of the Advisory Committee of the Board of Directors of the Capital Market Authority, the National Center for Performance Measurement, the Saudi Stock Market Board “Tadawul”, the Saudi Space Authority, and the Saudi Polo Federation.

Ms. Nashar also chairs the Women’s Empowerment in Business Action Council, which is one of the main initiatives emanating from the G20 Business Group that Saudi Arabia is presiding over this year. Ms. Nashar is considered one of the most prominent females with presence and influence in the Arab business communities, as she maintained her position in 2019, for the second year in a row, on the list of “Top 100 Powerful Women in the World” according to the annual poll of the American "Forbes" magazine.

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Varieties

Rare Diseases often Go Undiagnosed or Untreated in Parts of Africa. A Project Seeks to Change That

Neurology student Henriette Dieng examines Abdou Diop, a patient with genetic neuropathy at Pedro Rodriguez's clinic in Dakar, Senegal, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)
Neurology student Henriette Dieng examines Abdou Diop, a patient with genetic neuropathy at Pedro Rodriguez's clinic in Dakar, Senegal, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)
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Rare Diseases often Go Undiagnosed or Untreated in Parts of Africa. A Project Seeks to Change That

Neurology student Henriette Dieng examines Abdou Diop, a patient with genetic neuropathy at Pedro Rodriguez's clinic in Dakar, Senegal, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)
Neurology student Henriette Dieng examines Abdou Diop, a patient with genetic neuropathy at Pedro Rodriguez's clinic in Dakar, Senegal, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)

Ndeye Lam visits the cemetery often, praying and gently touching the seashells laid out across her daughter’s gravesite.

“Mariama will always be here,” she said, stepping away from the grave and onto a path that winds through rows of monuments outlined with white tile, stone and sand.

At home, Lam and her husband Pathé smiled over an old video clip of their daughter beaming as she celebrated her 13th birthday with cake and sparklers. When the girl was little, she loved to play. By 13, her muscles had weakened, her spine had curved and stiffened and in her last months, she struggled increasingly to breathe.

She visited Fann hospital in Dakar, where neurologist Dr. Pedro Rodriguez Cruz measured her lung capacity. He suspects Mariama had SELENON-related myopathy, a muscular dystrophy that causes severe respiratory compromise. A new BiPAP machine might have helped to ease her breathing, but it was too late.

Globally, more than 350 million people live with rare diseases, most of them caused by a misstep hidden within their genes. Some conditions can be caught early and treated—but in parts of Africa where population data and resources are scarce, many people go undiagnosed. Rodriguez is trying to change that by connecting patients with genetic testing and medical support, while gathering key data from those patients and their families.

“Most rare disease data has been collected from people of European ancestry, so we have very little knowledge about what’s happening in other parts of the world, mainly in Africa,” Rodriguez said, The AP news reported.

His research is funded by organizations including the La Caixa Foundation in Spain and the National Ataxia Foundation in the United States. And he has consulted with scientists in China, France, Boston, and elsewhere around the world, documenting rare diseases and novel disease-causing gene variants.

That research is creating a library of genetic data for scientists and clinicians. Patients in Senegal are benefiting, too, with a path to diagnosis.

Genetic testing and diagnosis can be life-saving In Guediawaye, Fatoumata Binta Sané’s daughter Aissata has glutaric acidemia type I, an inherited disorder in which the body can’t process certain proteins properly. Her arms and legs are tightly drawn up toward her chest. She can’t walk or reach for things, speak, sit on her own or hold her head up. Sané cradles Aissata in her arms constantly, and the 8-year-old smiles at the sound of her mother’s voice.

In the U.S., newborns are screened for treatable genetic conditions. In Senegal, newborn screening is not routine. Infants who appear healthy at birth might go undiagnosed and experience irreversible decline. Glutaric acidemia type I, for example, can cause brain damage, seizures, coma and early death.

Sané is waiting for genetic testing results for Aissata’s one-year-old sister Aminata. Patients can live long, healthy lives if they start treatment before the onset of symptoms. That includes following a strict diet, avoiding protein-rich foods like nuts, fish and meat and taking the supplement L-carnitine. Though consultation with Rodriguez was free, lifelong treatment is not. If Aminata shares her sister’s disease, Sané will need government assistance to buy medication.

Prof. Moustapha Ndiaye, head of the neurology department at Fann, hopes young physicians will graduate prepared to assist rare disease patients not just in Senegal but in other African countries.

“Students travel from across Africa to study here,” Ndiaye said.

At the start of her career, Dr. Henriette Senghor saw patients who were hospitalized for months. Some died, and no one knew why.

“There was this problem—there was this void,” said Senghor, who’s now training with Rodriguez.

In 2021, Rodriguez established a partnership between the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar and CNAG, the National Center for Genomic Analysis in Barcelona. Rodriguez collects patients’ blood samples and delivers the extracted DNA to Barcelona, where scientists sequence it, storing the answers it holds in a large database. Almost 1,300 participants—patients and families—have enrolled in his study of rare disease in West Africa.

Families cross borders for care In the Gambia, Fatou Samba’s sons Adama, 8, and Gibriel, 4, like to play soccer and feed the sheep in their backyard. On a recent afternoon, they took turns playing with a toy airplane and a globe. Adama, who hopes to be a pilot, pointed to where he wanted to go: the U.S. Outside, he started to climb a pile of bicycles propped up against the wall, and Gibriel followed.

“We’re climbing Mount Everest,” Adama said.

Standing on a bicycle wheel, Adama hesitated. Samba reached for him, setting him down on solid ground. There is a tiny scar on his forehead where broken skin has been stitched back together. Last year, Samba couldn’t explain his frequent falling, so she sought answers in Dakar. Rodriguez confirmed Adama had Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Gibriel's genetic test results are pending. Children often lose the ability to run or climb stairs first, and later can’t walk or raise their arms. In adulthood, they develop heart and breathing problems.

Both boys are taking corticosteroids, which can slow disease progression for patients diagnosed early.

“Without the medication, it would have been terrible. Once we started, after a few weeks we saw improvement,” Samba said. “Doctors are destined to investigate (the disease) and find a cure ... I pray doctors will find a cure.”

Data is the first step Back at Fann Hospital, Rodriguez and Senghor consult with Woly Diene, 25, and her mother and brother. When Diene was 15, she started falling at school. Soon, she felt pain throughout her body. She couldn’t move. She lost her hearing, the strength in her hands and control of the muscles in her face.

Diene, who comes from a rural village in Senegal, has riboflavin transporter deficiency. High doses of vitamin B2—a supplement available on Amazon—can slow, stop and even reverse damage from this condition that is fatal without treatment.

Diene took her first dose when she was diagnosed in August 2023. She still has some difficulty hearing, but Diene is walking again. She has regained the strength in her face and hands. Diene’s brother Thierno said vitamin B2 is expensive, but he knows his sister needs it for the rest of her life.

“I am happy,” Diene said, smiling. “I hope to keep improving.”

While efforts like these help patients, they also allow doctors to collect data—and that’s vital for rare disease research, policy and drug development, said Lauren Moore, chief scientific officer at the National Ataxia Foundation.

“The most prevalent diseases get the most attention and the most funding,” she said. “Data ... really is the first step.”

A $50,000 grant from the foundation allows Rodriguez and colleagues to enroll study participants in Senegal and Nigeria with inherited ataxias—which can lead to muscle weakness, loss of mobility, hearing and vision difficulties and life-shortening heart problems.

The USAID cuts have not affected his research, but grant awards are limited. Rodriguez, Senghor and Rokhaya Ndiaye, professor of human genetics at the University of Dakar, are making plans to ensure genetic testing continues in Senegal.

Global collaboration is essential, said Ndiaye—and strengthening local infrastructure is just as important.

“The need is there,” she said. “And we have a lot of hope.”