International Public Relations Association Gulf Chapter elects new board

Announcing the results, Dr. Thuraya Al Arrayed, Chairperson of the Nominations Committee, congratulated members on the smooth flow of the election process and announced the names of the new board members as follows:

IPRA GC President, Faisal Al Zahrani, from Saudi Aramco Public Relations Department; Executive Vice President, Sultan Al Bazie [CEO of Attariq Communications]; Vice President Qatar, Jassim Fakhroo [Managing Director, Media & Marketing Department, Hamad Medical City]; Vice President Kuwait, Etedal Al-Ayyar, [Managing Director, Way Communications]; Vice President UAE, Mohammed Kirat [Head, Department of Public Relations, College of Communication, University of Sharjah]; Vice President Bahrain, Fahad Ibrahim Al Shehabi [PR Officer in the Bahrain Parliament and President of the Bahrain PR Organization]; Vice President Oman, Hassan Al Saleh [Managing Partner, TRACCS Oman]; Vice President Saudi Arabia [Western Region], Sarah Al Ayed [Managing Partner, TRACCS Saudi Arabia and Network Vice President]; Vice President [Central Region], Humoud Al-Ghobaini [Senior Manager, Corporate Communications, Mobily Riyadh]; Vice President [Certification and Education], Sunil John [Managing Director, Asdaa]; Vice President [Membership], Manal Al Hazza [PR Representative, Saudi Aramco Public Relations]. The positions of Vice President [Media & PR] and Treasurer are yet to be appointed.

Newly elected VP for the Western Region in Saudi Arabia, Sarah Al Ayed, is co founder of Trans-Arabian Creative Communications (TRACCS) and a shareholder and corporate officer of the headquarters in Saudi Arabia. She is one of the leading Gulf Arab female public relations practitioners and is considered one of Saudi Arabia's leading businesswomen. Mrs. Al Ayed leads TRACCS Saudi Arabia, the leading public relations practice in the Kingdom, and oversees some of the company's most important regional and multi-national accounts.

Reviewing progress made over the past two years, Dr. Thuraya said that the Association has witnessed a number of conferences and specialized symposiums highlighting the vision and philosophy of IPRA and public relations practitioners in the region and wished the new board members every success in continuing the excellent work of their predecessors.

Newly elected IPRA GC President, Mr. Faisal Al Zahrani, echoed these remarks, saying: "First and foremost I would like to thank all members for their support and also express the Association's deep gratitude to the previous board members for their great efforts in enhancing the image of the IPRA Gulf Chapter."

Mr. Al Zahrani went on to say that in his capacity as the new IPRA GC President his plan is to continue development of the Association's programs, increase membership drive within the Gulf countries, and invite leaders within the public relations industry to play a key role by participating in seminars and conferences at international, regional and local levels. He added that he would utilize his professional experience in the field of media relations and public speaking to promote the Association's strategic goals and objectives and to develop leadership and communication skills among IPRA GC members.

Established in 2003, the Gulf Chapter is one of the 70 global chapters of the International Public Relations Association which was found in London in 1955. The objectives of the Association are to develop and enhance the PR skills and experience of its members and to build strong professional relations between IPRA members throughout the world.