UAE. Dubai Duty Free Senior Vice President for Marketing Sinéad El Sibai has been named a recipient of the Irish Presidential Distinguished Service Award.
She received the award from Irish President Michael D. Higgins at a ceremony held at the presidential residence Ãras an Uachtaráin in Dublin on 16 January.
El Sibai was one of 13 Irish citizens living abroad to receive the award this year. She was selected in the category of Irish Community Support for her contribution to the Irish community in the UAE and her role in raising awareness of the UAE in Ireland.
Launched by the Irish government in 2012, the Presidential Distinguished Service Awards honour Irish people living outside Ireland who have given sustained service in areas such as business, education, community, arts and culture, sport, charitable works and peace.
El Sibai said: “I am deeply honoured to receive this recognition from the President and government of Ireland. I would like to share this with the many Irish people in the UAE who, in one way or another, have supported the wider Irish community.
“I am also thrilled to follow in the footsteps of Colm McLoughlin, who was awarded the Presidential Distinguished Service Award for Business in 2014.”
A well-regarded travel retail professional, El Sibai has been a key figure in the Irish community in Dubai, her home for more than 35 years. She is a founding board member of the Irish Business Network (IBN) and served as its Chair up to 2022.
She’s actively involved with the IBN through the Woman’s Network, leadership sessions, webinars and mentoring.
As Senior Vice President for Marketing at Dubai Duty Free, El Sibai has led the operation’s major sponsorship agreements in Ireland including the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby, Dubai Duty Free Irish Open and Dublin Arabic Film Festival.
Through the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby charity activation, she has helped raise funds for Irish charities over the years including Autism Ireland, the Jack & Jill Foundation and Barretstown Children’s Camp.
In Dubai, she is often the first port of call for sponsorships from the Irish Community including the Dubai Celts GAA Club and the Dubai Irish Golf Society.
Other awardees included Irish haute couture milliner Philip Treacy; Human Rights Organisation Haki Yetu (Our Rights) Executive Director in Kenya Fr Gabriel Dolan; Irish Arts Centre New York Executive Director Aidan Connolly; and Irish Arts Centre New York Vice Chair Pauline Turley. Other notable Irish citizens who previously received the recognition are actor Liam Neeson (2018) and presenter and London Irish Centre Patron Dermot O’Leary (2020).
To date, there have been three Irish nationals living in the UAE who have received the accolade, including Colm McLoughlin (2014) and Gerald Lawless (2016), who were both awarded in the Business and Education category. ✈
