Middle East & North Africa

Cairo, Dubai, Istanbul, Tel Aviv

HBS continues its efforts to build a deep understanding of and expertise in global business practice and innovation around the world, including throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The School opened the MENA Research Center in Istanbul in 2013, followed by offices in Dubai and Cairo. Separately an office was opened in Tel Aviv in 2016 reporting to the Europe Research Center. All play an important role in helping HBS develop and strengthen relationships with business and academic leaders in the Middle East, Turkey, North Africa, and Central Asia. Support for faculty research, student programming, Executive Education, and Harvard Business Publishing are enabled by these HBS locations.

Locations

Middle East and North Africa Research Center: Dubai
Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Middle East and North Africa Research Center: Cairo
Cairo, Egypt

Middle East and North Africa Research Center: Istanbul
Istanbul, Turkey

Israel Research Office
Tel Aviv, Israel

News & Highlights

JUNE 2025
MBA Admissions

HBS MBA Admissions Events in Istanbul, Türkiye

On June 26th, the MENA Research Center and MBA Admissions co-hosted an information session in Istanbul. The event opened with welcome remarks from Yasemin Çağlar, followed by a keynote speech by Alper Gökgöz (MBA 2010), CEO of ING Türkiye, who shared inspiring insights from his personal and professional journey and the role HBS has played in shaping his path and leadership. The session continued with a panel led by Mary Downs, Assistant Director of Digital Marketing at MBA Admissions. The panel featured three alumni and a current MBA student, who shared their personal experiences at HBS and beyond. Their stories offered prospective applicants a well-rounded and authentic perspective on the academic journey, community life, and career opportunities that come with an HBS MBA.

May 2025
CREATING EMERGING MARKETS INTERVIEWS

Creating Emerging Markets Interviews: Hani Berzi (Egypt) and Khalid Al Rumaihi (Bahrain)

The Creating Emerging Markets project provides a unique research and teaching resource on business leadership in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East over recent decades. At its core are over 180 interviews by Harvard faculty with high impact leaders in business and social enterprise. Read the interviews with Hani Berzi, Group Chairman and CEO, Edita Food Industries and Khalid Al Rumaihi, Executive Chairman, Amriya Group W.L.L.

MAY 2025
MBA Admissions

HBS MBA Admissions Events in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

On May 20th, the MENA Research Center held an event in Riyadh titled The HBS MBA Experience: Insights from Alumni, bringing together prospective applicants and HBS alumni for an evening of meaningful conversations. The event began with welcome remarks by Alpana Thapar and continued with a panel discussion featuring five MBA alumni, moderated by Yasemin Çağlar. Alumni shared reflections on the five key aspects of the HBS MBA—Academics, Student Life, Community, Careers, and Life After HBS—providing attendees with first-hand insights into the MBA journey and its lasting impact. One of the newly admitted students attended the event to interact with the prospective applicants to share their application journey.

APRIL 2025
EVENT

Reskilling in the Age of an AI with Prof. Raffaella Sadun

On April 17th, the MENA Research Center held a virtual event for alumni and friends of the Center titled Reskilling in the Age of AI, featuring Professor Raffaella Sadun, Charles E. Wilson Professor of Business Administration from the Strategy Unit. Professor Sadun presented key findings from a joint research effort between the Digital Data Design Institute at Harvard’s Digital Reskilling Lab and the Boston Consulting Group’s Henderson Institute. Based on interviews with leaders from 40 global organizations, the research sheds light on how companies are navigating large-scale reskilling efforts and redefining traditional approaches to workforce development in the face of rapid technological change. The event concluded with a dynamic Q&A session that reflected the audience’s diverse interests and practical concerns.

APRIL 2025
ALUMNI

Navigating Tough Conversations in Family Enterprises with Senior Lecturer Christina Wing

On April 8th, the MENA Research Center and the HBS Egypt Club co-organized an intimate alumni dinner in Cairo featuring Christina R. Wing, Senior Lecturer in the Technology and Operations Management Unit at Harvard Business School. The evening brought together alumni for a candid conversation on the dynamics of family enterprises. Christina R. Wing shared insights from her many courses and work with family businesses around the world. The discussion resonated with attendees, many of whom manage or advise family-owned businesses.

New Research on the Region

September 2025
Case

Oriental Weavers: Handing Over the Loom

By: Christina R. Wing and Ahmed Dahawy

Over the course of forty years, Oriental Weavers had grown from a modest Egyptian family business into one of the world’s largest manufacturers of machine woven carpets and rugs. Managing a family-led company at that scale was no easy task, but the business was guided by the firm and respected hand of its founder, Mohamed Farid Khamis. After his passing in 2020, his eldest daughter, Yasmine, stepped into his role as chairperson, taking on the responsibility of leading the company through its next chapter. She had spent decades working closely with her father and practically running Oriental Weavers alongside him. But as the company grew more complex and globally integrated, Yasmine became convinced that it needed to evolve—shifting from a family-run enterprise to a professionally governed institution. Determined to build a structure that could outlast the family name, she appointed a non-family CEO and brought in several seasoned executives. Yet handing over the reins proved far from easy. Relatives pushed back, long-serving employees resisted change, and even Yasmine struggled to fully let go. The situation was compounded by lingering challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and a new crisis in 2025, as a wave of U.S. tariffs threatened Oriental Weavers’ most important export market. With the company at a turning point, Yasmine faced a defining question: Should she double down on the leadership changes she had set in motion? Or retake the helm to guide Oriental Weavers through yet another moment of crisis?

August 2025
Teaching Material

Social Enterprise in Sub-Saharan Africa

By: Brian Trelstad, Pippa Tubman Armerding and Maagatha Kalavadakken

August 2025 (Revised September 2025)
Case

Bridging Trust and Tech: Digitizing Morocco's Financial System

By: Lauren Cohen and Sophia Pan

Fadwa Jouali, Senior Expert of Payment Development and FinTechs at Bank Al-Maghrib (Central Bank of Morocco), wondered how she could fast-track adoption of the country’s mobile payments system. Historically, many Moroccans had never held a bank account, perhaps due to cultural preferences towards cash. The Central Bank of Morocco succeeded in creating a National Payment System, which would allow consumers and merchants alike to facilitate transactions through a mobile device. However, adoption faltered behind expectations. Comparing progress to that of Pix, the payment scheme led by Brazil, Morocco’s mobile payments adoption was underwhelming. Jouali recognized that Morocco had unique characteristics, such as lower costs and a lingering presence of consumer distrust. Taking this into account, how would she help nurture the FinTech industry in Morocco to ensure broad stakeholder engagement and create the right incentives for the adoption of mobile payments?

See more research