Abu Dhabi Ports Fourth Annual Partners Forum

Abdulla Mohamed Shadid is on the board of Abu Dhabi Ship Building Co. and Strata Manufacturing PJSC.

Dr Adeeb Alafeefi is the Director of the National Programme for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises at the UAE’s Ministry of Economy where he provides expertise, technical support as well as training to boost UAE SMEs. His department also coordinates with federal and local governments and private sectors to promote products inside the UAE and overseas.

Prior to this role he worked as the Director of Foreign Trade & Export Support, Abu Dhabi DED from 2008-2018, where he supervised the development and support of UAE exports by helping national companies streamline their exporting capabilities.

Dr. Alafeefi played an instrumental role in supervising and follow up of UAE exports strategies, thereby supporting the government’s role in providing assistance to national companies. He is also a member of Abu Dhabi Free Trade Agreement Committee and engaged in gathering data and information to establish the first Abu Dhabi emirate strategy 2000-2020 with the United Nations.

Dr. Alafeefi holds a Bachelor’s Degree (BA) in Management & Economy from UAE University, a Masters Degree (MSc) in Economic Policy for Developing and Transitional Economies from the University of Bradford, and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in International Political Economy from Queen's University, Belfast.

With over 12 years of experience in urban development and transport infrastructure, Ahmed Al Musawa Al Hashemi is the Director of Strategy & Marketing of Etihad Rail.

Ahmed is charting the development plans of Etihad Rail as well as the establishment and acceleration of programmes and initiatives. He is also responsible for the company’s planning functions including traffic forecasts, business modelling and pricing strategies. Overseeing the Marketing and Communications functions, he acts as the focal point in engagements with regulators, partners and customers.

Prior to joining Etihad Rail, Ahmed assumed the position of Special Projects Team Leader in the Abu Dhabi Department of Municipal Affairs, where he initiated and managed over 20 projects in different disciplines, ranging from mega-urban revitalization schemes to smaller quick-win solutions with a total budget of AED 1.4bn.

A Member of the GCC Railway Committee and the UAE Land Transport Technical Council, he is also an affiliate of the Transportation Research Board (TRB), and the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Ahmed holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering, and a Master of Business Administration Degree from the University of Strathclyde.

Ciffford D’souza has 25 years of progressive experience in the field of International freight forwarding, project cargo handling, transport and logistics management and sales and marketing. He currently holds the position of General Manager – Cargo Division at MICCO Logistics, one of the leading freight forwarding and logistics, where he manages the complete company cargo division for all branches.


During his 25 years of working under a single company banner, he has managed to scale various heights in management and international relations in project freight market and project forwarders.

Dhruv Kotak is the Managing Director of the J M BAXI GROUP of companies - a diversified business group involved in shipping & logistics. The Group has 103 years of Maritime experience and has, over the years, grown to be a truly global player with its customers spread across 55 countries, and offices in over 63 cities across India and the world.

Dhruv, a fourth-generation entrepreneur, joined the business when he was 15, and has worked his way up. A quick learner with an astute business sense, Dhruv has been pivotal in ensuring that the J M BAXI GROUP stays ahead of its peers and is an innovator in the Maritime and logistics space. He has been instrumental in making J M BAXI GROUP a truly global organisation and also an acknowledged “Thought- Leader” in the Indian Maritime domain. He spearheaded the Group’s venture into technology business, and also mentored to consolidate the group’s operations. He has played a key role, not only in envisioning the Group’s growth strategy but also in steering the business forward with substantial value-addition to its portfolio.

A graduate from the INSEAD institute of Management, Dhruv is a keen sportsman and plays cricket, golf and tennis and is also an avid trekker. He has great inter-personal skills and self-confidence and has put in two decades of hard work to successfully place the Group on the pedestal it is today.

Fahed Ghareeb Al Shamsi is the Acting Executive Director of Administration at Abu Dhabi Customs. He has a wealth of experience within his field.

Eng. Ibrahim Jaber Al Ali is the Acting Manager of the Environmental Assessment & Permitting Section at the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD), which oversees environmental permitting of all industrial, commercial, development, and infrastructure projects in the Emirate.

Starting as an environmental specialist with EAD over 12 years ago, Mr. Al Ali has developed a comprehensive and practical expertise within the field of environmental impact assessment, which includes evaluating environmental studies and management plans of proposed projects, and working with proponents to help mitigate their projects’ potential environmental impacts. In his current role as the Acting Manager, he leads all permitting and assessment operations concerning all project types at the agency.

Prior to joining EAD, Mr. Al Ali worked with ADGAS within its Integrity and Quality department.

Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi is the Chief Executive Officer of Abu Dhabi Ports, the operator and the manager of commercial and community ports within the emirate of Abu Dhabi, as well as Fujairah Terminals and Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD).

In his role, he oversees the development of Abu Dhabi Ports’ portfolio of assets and activities as well as directs their strategy and operations. Under his leadership, the transition from a project-focused organisation to a fully operational, customer focused ports and industrial zones business (KIZAD) has been a remarkable success.
A strong, determined and entrepreneurial leader, he leads Abu Dhabi Ports’ role in supporting the government’s objective of diversifying the non-oil and gas economy.

Al Shamisi is an experienced maritime executive with almost 20 years of industry experience, working to ensure Abu Dhabi Ports continues to hold a prime position in the region’s commercial maritime whilst boosting the profile of Abu Dhabi globally.

He joined Abu Dhabi Ports in 2008 and has held key leadership positions within its portfolio, which include the Executive Vice President for the company’s Ports Unit, where he was instrumental in restructuring this unit and rationalising its assets. He also oversaw the completion and commissioning of the first phase of Abu Dhabi Ports’ flagship port, Khalifa Port and of its adjacent Khalifa Industrial Zone.
During his management, Abu Dhabi Ports won more than 40 prestigious local and international awards, including five categories of Abu Dhabi Award for Excellence in Government Performance 2017 which granted the company the Main Award.

Al Shamisi is a Board Member of Abu Dhabi Marine Operations & Services Company (ADMOS), Etihad Rail DB, the Federal Transport Authority - Land & Maritime, and MAKE A WISH Foundation UAE. He also serves as a member of the Board of Trustees to the Emirates Maritime Arbitration Centre. He is currently the Chairman of KIZAD Board of Directors, and has served as a Board Member and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Terminals and as a Board Member of Etihad Airways. He has been recently appointed as the Vice Chairman of Arab Sea Port Federation.

Al Shamisi holds an MBA, an advanced Diploma of Applied Science (shipmaster) and a Graduate Certificate of Management from the University of Tasmania, Australia.

Dr. Noura Al Dhaheri is the CEO of Maqta Gateway, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Ports which provides digital services to facilitate trade. Dr. Al Dhaheri has led Maqta Gateway since its launch in 2014.

Dr. Al Dhaheri has helped introduce a seamless transition into a totally digitalised way of conducting trade, creating a bridge between data and the port’s business operations, while aligning with the Abu Dhabi Economic Vision and optimising port processes. Maqta Gateway is the developer and operator of the port community system called Mamar, a single portal facilitating information flow between all port stakeholders and users. Mamar is being introduced to international markets.

Before joining Abu Dhabi Ports in 2015 Dr. Al Dhaheri worked as a Research Assistant at the United Arab Emirates University, which was also her place of study. During her undergraduate studies she was recognised with various prestigious awards for her outstanding contribution in the field of information technology, including the “Best Pipe Inspection Robot” Award which was presented to her by Schlumberger.

Dr. Al Dhaheri achieved a BSc degree in Software Engineering and an MSc in Engineering Systems and Management with Honours at the United Arab Emirates University. She completed her PhD at Masdar Institute and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Richard Thompson is an award-winning business journalist and Middle East expert with a passion for helping governments and businesses better understand each other. Since 2010, he has served as the Editorial Director at the Middle East Economic Digest, the world's leading source of Middle East business intelligence, high-level information, networking, and advisory services for governments and businesses in the region. As a veteran editor and public relations professional, Richard focuses on a number of key priorities, including: strategic business and government communications; editorial leadership and strategy; international management; product innovation and development; and, presenting and commentating on Middle East affairs.

Ross joined Abu Dhabi Ports in 2016 as Vice President of Commercial and Business Development in the company’s Ports Unit. In that role, Ross was responsible for the Sales, Business Development and Customer Service departments. In January 2017 Ross was appointed Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, responsible for the functions of Corporate Commercial and Strategy, Quality and Excellence, as well as Business Process and Business Intelligence.

During his career, Ross has specialised in leading and managing commercial revenues, commercial process and commercial strategy across multiple sites and market sectors having worked for leading international companies in the industry such as the Peel Ports Group and American President Lines (APL).

At Abu Dhabi Ports, Ross is responsible for driving the growth of the company, delivering an enhanced customer experience and setting the corporate governance of the commercial function.

Ross is a holder of a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Business and Languages from Plymouth University. He has also obtained the Executive Management Diploma from Singapore Management University (SMU) and an Executive Diploma in Maritime Economics and Supply Chain from Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Capt. Saif Al Muhairi
Captain Saif Al Muhairi is the Director of Waterways with Abu Dhabi Government’s Department of Transport. He previously served as a Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at ADNOC Logistics and Services. Captain Muhairi is a seasoned maritime professional, with the distinction of becoming a Master Mariner with ADNATCO - NGSCO in 2011 and being the only sailing UAE national, at the time, to serve with the rank. He continued his career with the company and went onto serve as its Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Development.

Waleed Altamimi joined Tasneef as the Chief Operating Officer in October 2016 with 30 years of maritime experience from the UAE Navy, Abu Dhabi Shipbuilding and Abu Dhabi Ports.

He started his career in the UAE Navy as a Midshipman in 1986 and obtained his Naval Architecture Degree from US Naval Academy. He was the first UAE engineer to involve classification societies in Naval Construction.

Then he moved to ADSB in 2004 as a Technical Manager responsible for design management of Baynunah Corvette Construction program.

Mr. Altamimi Joined Abu Dhabi Ports in Nov. 2008, taking important responsibilities for the development of numerous ports including the state of the art Khalifa Port.

He is now the General Manager of Tasneef Maritime since January 2018.

Walid Yehia, is the DELL EMC regional presales Senior Director for Turkey, Africa, Russia and the Middle East.

Walid has more than 20 years of extensive IT consulting experience managing all facets of Information Technology from strategy and system integration, to design and delivery.

Walid has been with DELL EMC since 2006 in several leadership positions. During this period, Walid worked closely with many large enterprises from different industries to support their IT strategy around Cloud, big data and digital transformation.

Prior to joining DELL EMC, he worked for various multi-national vendors and systems integrators.