Yasmina Azhari is a

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

n businesswoman. She is the founder of Mira Trading, and co-founder of Dubai-based Al Yam International.

Early life

Azhari was born in

Latakia , coordinates = , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = 11 , elevation_ft = , postal_code_type = , postal_code = , area_code = Country code: 963 City code: 41 , geocode ...

. Her father was Riad Azhari, who held the position of the Honorary Consul of the Netherlands at Latakia & Tartous in the 1970s. Her mother was a

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

n native. She studied French literature.

Career

Azhari started her career in her family business in maritime transport. In 1999, she became a partner and general manager at the Trade Coordination Office (TCO), a shipping agency that represented Maersk Shipping in Syria from 1978 to 2017. She was also appointed the Honorary Consul of the Netherlands at Latakia & Tartous, and held the position for ten years. Azhari joined the Board of Directors of the Latakia Chamber of Commerce, and elected three times as the head of Latakia Business Women's Committee. She was the president of the Arab Business Women Council, member of the Advisory Board of Bank Audi Syria, and member of the United Nation Advisory Council of the Global Charter on Syria. Azhari is engaged in civil activities in Syria and the UAE. She was the co-founder and president of Modernizing and Activating Women's Role in Economic Development (MAWRED), a society dedicated to empower Syrian women through creating jobs. She also founded a community to protect the Slunfeh and Kassab forests in Latakia. Azhari is co-founder and head of Bashaer Al Nour, an NGO to provide help for children with

Autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

and

Down Syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

. In February 2018 she was appointed the Chairwoman of Syria Saudi Company for Touristic Investments, the owner of

Four Seasons Hotel Four Seasons Hotels Limited, trading as Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, is an international luxury hotel and resort company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Four Seasons currently operates more than 100 hotels and resorts worldwide.D ...

in Syria.

Recognition

Yasmina Azhari is the first Syrian woman to hold the position of Honorary Consul, and the first woman to join the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Latakia. Azhari received the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

of the Netherlands (Knight), making her the first Syrian woman to hold a knighthood from a foreign country. She was listed three times in Forbes’ 50 Most Powerful Arab Businesswomen, as well as being listed three times in

Arabian Business ''Arabian Business'' (''AB'') is a weekly business magazine published in Dubai and focusing on global and regional news analysis. The brand is aimed at the English- and Arabic-speaking communities and is published in both languages. Its circula ...

’ 100 Most Powerful Women in the Arab World. She was chosen the best entrepreneur in Syria by

Ernst & Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewaterh ...

in 2011.

Personal life

Azhari is married and has a son and a daughter, Mohammed and Rania. After the Syrian conflict in 2012, she moved with her family to the UAE.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azhari, Yasmina Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century Syrian women Knights of the Order of Orange-Nassau People from Latakia Syrian businesspeople 21st-century businesswomen