WIDN with Malak Fouad

Haitham Mattar is the Managing Director of the Intercontinental Hotel Group for India, Middle East & Africa. Haitham has had a distinguished career working for global hotel giants as well as leading tourism for the Governments of Ras Al Khaimah and Saudi Arabia. His story is one of individual will, grit and resilience starting from his first job at 17. He tells me about the importance of maint...

On our bonus episode Her Royal Highness Nourah Al Faisal tells me about the inspiration behind her first jewellery collection, and how her company, Nuun, navigated the pandemic.  Music ID: 5ROQ12DERYHSUUVQ This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

I’m excited to welcome Her Royal Highness Nourah Al Faisal as this season’s inaugural guest. She’s the founder of bespoke jewellery brand Nuun , and the founder of design and research consultancy Ahdlal for Design. She’s also the great-granddaughter of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. As someone who grew up in Saudi, I continue to be impressed by the transformation taking place across the country. I t...

I’m excited to bring you a new season of What I Did Next, where I talk to people about their pivotal moments and life journeys. Season 8 begins September 24, with new episodes every second Tuesday. This season, we’re also adding new benefits to our members’ club. You’ll be getting early access to our episodes—in fact, members can listen to the first THREE episodes of our season on Tuesday—we’ll be...

Hope you’re having a great summer so far. We’ll be back with new episodes in September. In the meantime, here’s another one from our archive: my conversation with author, entrepreneur & tech giant, Mo Gawdat.  Mo was Chief Business Officer at Google X, and is now the popular author of Solve for Happy , Scary Smart , and more recently, That Little Voice in Your Head , with more books to come. H...

We’ll be back with new episodes in September. In the meantime, here’s one from our archive–actor and comedian Ramy Youssef. Ramy is the starof the eponymous hit show, Ramy , which has won Golden Globes and Peabodies, as well as Emmy nominations. He's also the co-creator of Mo with Mo Amer, and can be seen later this year in Poor Things with Emma Stone, William Dafoe and Mark Ruffalo among other bi...

I’m joined by the show’s producer, Chirag Desai, to look back at some of the season’s highlights & themes from our latest line-up of incredible guests. You’ll also hear from Mostafa Gad, Global Head of Investment Banking at EFG Hermes, an EFG Holding Company. EFG Holding has been an incredible partner for the show & I talk to Mostafa about his life's trajectory and his stellar career with...

We’re continuing my conversation with multidisciplinary artist Ghada Amer. On this bonus episode, Ghada tells me about her artistic process, and what’s in her creative inbox. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

As a multidisciplinary artist, Ghada is as comfortable working with a needle and thread as she is with a paintbrush, or forging steel for sculptures or working on one-of-a-kind garden installations. She began exhibiting her work in the 90s, and her art continues to focus on women equality and female sexuality.  Ghada’s work has been shown at the world's finest fairs and exhibition spaces, includin...

We’re continuing my conversation with entrepreneur Mohamed Al Fayed, founder of Grubtech . On this bonus episode, we’ll talk a bit about his early years, and the launch of Ounass, the region’s premiere luxury marketplace. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

Mohamed Al Fayed is the co-founder & CEO of Grubtech, he's a digital advisor as well as a mentor, and he calls himself a tech disruptor. Even if you may not have heard of him directly, you’ll have come across some of his work. Beginning his career with Macy’s, one of the largest retailers in the U.S., Moe led the launch of Mamas & Papas and Gap in the GCC as well as the region’s largest lu...

We’re continuing my conversation with CNN’s Becky Anderson. On this bonus episode, we talk about her role as Managing Editor and how our region fits into the larger CNN programming agenda worldwide. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

Becky Anderson is the Managing Editor at CNN Abu Dhabi, and one of the channel’s most visible international anchors. From being the first team to broadcast from Riyadh after the ban on women driving was lifted to Tunisia during the Arab Spring, she has spearheaded special shows from Tehran, Jerusalem, Istanbul, Beirut and many more region capitals. I was excited to indulge my love for all things n...

We’re continuing my conversation from last week with pioneering environmentalist Dr. Mounir Neamatalla.  On our bonus episode, Dr. Mounir tells me about EQI’s micro-finance program and how the ground-breaking eco-lodge and restoration work in Siwa led to their involvement in a sustainable development project in AlUla, Saudi Arabia. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app fo...

Dr. Mounir Neamatalla is the founder of Environment Quality International, EQI, which he founded in 1981. EQI started out as the first environment-focused advisory in Egypt and went on to become a pioneer in the world of micro-finance. Then in 1996, Dr. Mounir’s visit to the remote oasis of Siwa led to the launch of the pathbreaking Siwa Sustainable Development Initiative. My conversation with Dr....

We’re continuing my conversation from last week with Malak El Baba, Country manager for VISA in Egypt. On this bonus episode, Malak tells me more about the digital payments industry, and Visa’s own evolution since it was established by Dee Hock in 1958. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

I’m joined this week by Malak El Baba, Egypt Country Manager for Visa, and a leader and role model for so many in her industry. We had a wonderful conversation that spanned different countries and phases of her life. Although she has spent nearly two decades in banking and finance, she actually started out wanting to become a diplomat. But destiny had other plans, shaping not just her career but w...

We’re continuing my conversation with award-winning design & entrepreneur Hatem Alakeel. On this bonus episode, Hatem tells me how he began supporting the creative community in Saudi Arabia, and his cultural life. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

Hatem Alakeel is an award-winning Saudi designer, fashion entrepreneur and podcast host. He has designed for global icons including Mattel’s Barbie, Evian, Lexus, Fairmont, Raffles, and the Ritz Carlton among others, and he was among the first regional artists to create and celebrate Saudi traditions. With his first company, Toby Hatem Alakeel, Hatem brought the traditional thobe into the luxury f...

We’re continuing my conversation from last week with bespoke artist Janan Shihadeh. On this bonus episode, Janan talks art techniques, how she had to adapt to living and honing her craft in Cairo, and we unpack her cultural life.  Links Maison825   by Tala Shalaby and Sara Kalo Samo Shalaby’s website This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stoc...

Janan Shihadeh has made her mark creating bespoke pieces for clients all around the world—from murals in Washington D.C., to furniture and candles in Cairo, to transforming old handbags into little arm-candy jewels in Dubai.  To say that Janan is versatile is an understatement. She brings passion, imagination and dynamism to whatever art medium she is working on and her eye for detail and colour i...

We’re continuing my conversation with His Excellency Amr Moussa, the former Foreign Minister of Egypt. On this bonus episode, he tells me more about his early life and attending law school. This episode is brought to you by EFG Hermes One , your one app for investing in more than 35 stock markets. Start investing today !

His Excellency Amr Moussa has had a distinguished career in the world of international diplomacy and cooperation. He served as the Ambassador of Egypt to India for 3 years in 1983, he was the Permanent Representative of Egypt to the UN in 1990, he was the Foreign Minister of Egypt for 10 years until 2001, when he became Secretary-General of the League of Arab States.  He continues to leave an impa...

A new season of What I Did Next begins March 5. I’ll be welcoming a new guest from our region every other Tuesday, and we’ll take a deep-dive into their lives’ pivotal moments. We’ll cross-cross the region and cut across a variety of industries to bring you conversations of success, failure, and everything in-between. This season, I’ll be talking to pioneers from the worlds of art, fashion, busine...

We’re currently on a season break and will be back with new episodes in March. In the meantime, I wanted to share my conversation legendary ad-man, Tarek Nour. Tarek told me about the trials and tribulations of the advertising world, and how he continued to adapt to the constantly changing industry. Today Tarek is semi-retired, active in some aspects of his business but also able to take a bird’s...