Sheikha Hissah Al Sabah to attend Crans Montana 'Strengthening the GCC Africa Cooperation' forum

Sheikha Hissah will also be leading a high-level delegation of ABC representatives at the important economic and investment forum.

The event, which is organised by Crans Montana Forum Middle East, in association with OFID OPEC Fund for International Development, will be the first of its kind to connect with the African nations, representing a new era of South-South cooperation in today's rapidly globalizing world.

The Forum will be held 1-3 December, 2008 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Spa, Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain, under the high patronage of H.H. Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Prime Minister of Kingdom of Bahrain.

Sheikha Hissah has a political science background and is most notably recognized in the region for establishing the Arab Businesswomen's Council in 1999.

She has also been Chairperson of the Arab African Woman Council since 2002.

Throughout her career, Sheikha Hissah has been committed to the advancement of women, and of social issues that affect society in general.

She has worked in Kuwait's public and private sectors and devoted a substantial amount of time and efforts towards community development.

In addition to her current positions, Sheikha Hissah has also been Chairperson of the Narcotics Control Committee - Kuwait Volunteers Women Society - for Community Service - since 1995, and has been the Honorary Chairperson of the Arab Federation of NGOs for Addiction and Prevention since 1996.

The historic event will provide a tangible platform for African Government Officials and Businesses, to network with the GCC region's key bankers and investors to discuss recent developments and business opportunities and to promote foreign direct investment and trade.

The forum will also provide a first-hand account of Africa's investment climate from a policy and regulatory environment perspective as well as enabling national, State, and Regional Governments, and the private sector, to showcase the clusters and projects that seek investments.

Other confirmed attendees from the African continent include H.E. Prime Minister Odinga of Kenya, the Prime Minister of Djbouti, H.E. Dileita Mohamed Dileita, several African Ministers and Secretary Generals of regional African organisations, as well as many other high-profile governmental and corporate personalities.

A number of high-profile African delegations are in the process of confirming their participation in this important Forum, in addition to several key business personalities from Bahrain's private sector and many senior-level governmental and corporate representatives from Saudi Arabia, and the GCC.

The Forum will also include a special one-day session entitled "The role of Sovereign Funds in Foreign Investment and Economic Development in Africa".

This smaller "Forum within the Forum" will allow major International Organizations, Multilateral Institutions, Funds, Multinational Corporations, Government bodies and experts to offer new insights into the evolving responses to the rise of Sovereign Funds.

This will include their strategies, their significant impact on development in Africa—particularly their contribution to infrastructure development in Africa and their potential contribution to funding R&D in key high-technology sectors of the 21st Century—and ultimately, how they will help shape a multi-polar world.

Since 1989, the Crans Montana Forum has been devoted to the Economic development and the World Integration of Africa through Economic Growth, Trade Capacity Building, Natural Resources management and Infrastructure Development.