Latham & Watkins and the Qatari Businesswomen Association co-hosted a roundtable forum on Innovative Ways to Implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the Middle East.

The panel was moderated by Ahmad Anani, of Latham & Watkins, and included esteemed panelists Ms. Amal Abdullatif Al-Mannai, Executive Director of the Social Development Center, and Dr. Adnan Ali Steitieh, Executive Director of Investment and Real Estate at Salam International Investment Ltd. and Secretary to the Board of Salam Bounian. 

The event was organised under the auspices of Latham & Watkins' Women Enriching Business (WEB) initiative, a multi-pronged program designed to promote women in business, and the Qatari Businesswomen Association's on-going efforts to provide members with skills, tools and learning opportunities to enhance their performance and contribute to the economic growth. 

The panelists discussed the business drivers advancing the CSR agenda in the boardroom and the role society plays in influencing corporate decisions surrounding CSR initiatives. 

The industry experts also commented on CSR practices in Qatar and more generally in the Middle East. Ms. Al-Mannai highlighted the crucial role women can play in increasing awareness of CSR practices as well as in helping implementing CSR policies in their own businesses. 

Dr. Steitieh commented on the role industry benchmarks can play in rewarding robust and innovative CSR practices and in helping motivate companies to be good corporate citizens, adding: "the essence of corporate social responsibility is to reconcile conflicting interests and to achieve a delicate balance between them." 

Anani said: "Qatari women are very influential in this debate and have an extremely good understanding of corporate social responsibility. The discussion was enriching and covered a wide range of issues connecting the legal, business and philanthropic worlds. At Latham, we are focused on facilitating dialogue around important business issues to encourage the sharing of best practices and to promote common understanding and awareness."

Mrs. Aisha Alfardan, Vice Chairwoman of the Qatari Businesswomen's Association, said: "We are delighted to partner with Latham & Watkins on this event. The session was very informative thanks to the insights and knowledge shared by the esteemed panelists. This topic is growing in importance and we look forward to further exploring the CSR topic and what constitutes best practices."