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Sunday, 19 March 2023

Adel El Labban steps down from AUB after two decades at the helm. PLUS: ITIDA, Journalists’ syndicate get new chiefs

Adel El Labban (LinkedIn) stepped down from his role as group CEO of Ahli United Bank last week, a position he has held since 2000, according to Youm7. El Labban was responsible for the management of the commercial, retail and private banking and wealth management businesses or AUB and all its affiliates across Bahrain, Kuwait, UAE, Iraq, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Libya and the UK. A senior international banker with close to 30 years in the industry, El Labban has held C-suite positions at the United Bank of Kuwait and CIB as well as acting as the vice president of corporate finance at Morgan Stanley’s Investment Banking Division.

Ahmed Elzaher (LinkedIn) has been officially made CEO of the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly, the Communications Ministry said in a statement yesterday. Elzaher has held the position since December, when he was named acting head in place of Amr Mahfouz who retired a month prior.

About Elzaher: Elzaher is also assistant minister for ecosystem development at the Communications Ministry, and has more than 27 years of experience in the IT industry in several countries, including Egypt, the UAE, Kenya and Algeria.

Khaled El Balshy has been elected the new head of the Journalists’ Syndicate after winning almost 50% of the vote in Friday’s election. El Balshy received 2,450 of the 5,062 votes, beating his closest rival, Al Akhbar editor-in-chief Khaled Miri, who got 2,211, according to a tally carried by Al Shorouk. El Balshy will succeed Diaa Rashwan who had headed the syndicate since 2019.

Who is El Balshy? A critic of the government, El Balshy is currently the editor-in-chief of the blocked leftist online publication Darb, before which he led El Badil. He also previously headed the syndicate’s freedoms committee. El Balshy ran a campaign focusing on press freedoms, the need for an independent syndicate, and low wages in the industry. The election results received coverage overseas: AFP.

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