08 Mar, 2023
Love what you do until you do what you love, a saying that one of Kuwait’s rising female talents, Engineer Fatima Al-Saqabi, genuinely believes in and lives by as she managed to make her mark and become an essential part of projects that contribute to the development of Kuwait and enrichment its tourism, most notably “Winter Wonderland Kuwait”.
Since March 8th is International Women’s Day, we wanted to highlight an example of female Kuwaiti talent such as Fatima Al-Saqabi, and find out more about her successful journey that started out of Kuwait, her experience as a working woman, and how she preferred investing her skills and experience in Kuwait rather than elsewhere.
If you’re
looking for a dose of inspiration today, keep reading!
Fatima, we’d love to get to know you better! Tell us a little about yourself.
After receiving my Electrical Engineering degree from the University of San Diego, I went to the UK to work with the London Underground Limited (LUL) to develop railways within the fund program, then I worked for Mitsubishi in Tokyo and obtained a certificate in developing turbines and heaters in Japan, after which I worked in the oil sector for 6 years in the French company, Schlumberger. Despite it all, I never found my passion when working for companies outside of Kuwait, and that’s when I decided to move back to Kuwait and invest everything I’ve learned to serve my country.
I first worked with Daman Hospital Company where we established Al-Ahmadi and Al-Jahra Hospitals, and I’m proud to have completed a large part of the projects to serve the development of Kuwait.
I later received the opportunity from the Tourism Enterprises Company, and that’s when I remembered my passion for entertainment projects – and decided to dive right in!
Winter Wonderland Kuwait is considered a precedent in an entertainment project in Kuwait being completed in less than 60 days, what is the reason behind the speed of completion?
The speedy completion is definitely thanks to the support of government agencies, not to mention the hard work of a homogeneous and passionate team that worked around the clock to complete the project at a record speed.
Winter
Wonderland Kuwait gave us hope that the dream of entertainment will grow at the
hands of Kuwaiti youth. Will that hope end at this point, or is there more?
The Winter Wonderland project is only the beginning, as Kuwait will hopefully witness many successes in the entertainment field in the future. There is a thirst for these types of projects, and everyone is excited about what is to come.
Tell us about your experience as a key Kuwaiti, female element within the tourism development plan in Kuwait.
I definitely
faced many challenges along the way, but in the end, I’ve found that hard work
and achievements do the talking – and that Kuwaiti women have become an
essential aspect of societal development.
What is your particular role in the Tourism Enterprise Company?
I am the Projects Engineer, in the Projects Department.
Any exclusive
information about upcoming projects?
There will be
many, just like the Green Island project happening right now. Unfortunately,
this is all I can say right now. But stay tuned!
Which project
are you most proud of being part of?
I’m proud of
all the projects I’ve been part of, they’ve helped me gain so much knowledge and
skills. But I would definitely say national projects are the closest to my
heart, such as Al-Ahmadi and Al-Jahra Hospitals, as well as Al-Messila and
Green Island projects.
Your job is
considered tedious with long working hours, what attracted you to this world?
I’ve learned
from studying and working abroad the importance of investing your time, hard
work, and achievements, it helps the mind and body grow, and since I am at the
peak of my energy, I prefer to use that energy at work. I’ve been blessed with
the support of the people closest to me and their belief in my abilities
which helps me continue to give more.
By having such a demanding job, how do you balance your work life and personal life?
Balancing aspects of your life will always be difficult, and there will need to be sacrifices made. I try my best through time management and prioritizing my tasks.
What’s the
best advice that you’ve ever received?
‘Love what you
do so you could do what you love.’
Who’s your
role model?
I don’t have
one. I’m inspired by achievements; I always learn a life lesson with every
achievement, and I aspire to achieve a lot more.
What do you aspire to achieve on a personal and professional level?
I aspire to
have an effective and positive role in all professional stages, and most
importantly for me, to be part of projects that contribute to the development
of Kuwait.
What is
success to you?
Success to me is
when people have been helped and are made happy.
