Who is Saadia Zahidi, the next Director General of International Air Transport Association?
- Zahidi has served on advisory groups for served on the European Space Agency’s High-Level Advisory Group
Pakistan-born executive Saadia Zahidi was appointed as the next Director General of the International Air Transport Association (IATA). She will be the first woman to head the global airline body.
Education
She has a BA in Economics from Smith College, an MPhil in International Economics from The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, and a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School.
From World Economic Forum to IATA
She spent 20+ years at the World Economic Forum as a Managing Director and Board Member where she founded the Centre for the New Economy and Society.
She also founded and co-authors the Forum’s Future of Jobs Reports, the Future of Growth Reports, the Global Gender Gap Reports, and Chief Economist Outlooks.
The International Air Transport Association is a global trade group for airlines that represents over 300 member carriers and sets commercial and safety standards for the aviation industry
Global Impact
Zahidi has served on advisory groups for served on the European Space Agency’s High-Level Advisory Group, the UN Secretary General’s panel for Women’s Economic Empowerment, and the Global Leadership Council of Generation Unlimited.
Beyond Aviation
She is the author of ‘Fifty Million Rising: The New Generation of Working Women Transforming the Muslim World’ (2018), which she said tracks the rise of working women in the Muslim world.
She also speaks English, French, Portuguese and Urdu, and holds Pakistani and Swiss nationalities.
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