ICE MENA Emerging Engineers Award 2024 final

Dr Ghada El-Mahdy

Prof. Ghada El-Mahdy is a professor of structural engineering at the British University in Egypt (BUE).  Prof. El-Mahdy started her professional career as a structural engineer at Arab Consulting Engineers (Moharram-Bakhoum). In 1990 she went to Canada to study at the University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario where she received her MSc and PhD degrees in structural stability.  

In 1997 she returned to Egypt and worked as a senior structural engineer in Arab Consulting Engineers until she was appointed as a Researcher at the Housing and Building National Research Center (HBRC) in the Structures and Metallic Construction Research Institute in 2002.  

At HBRC she served as a member of the code committee for the Egyptian Code of Practice for the Planning, Design, and Construction of Bridges and Elevated Intersections – Part 6 (Steel Bridges), and an associate editor for the HBRC journal, as well as the editor for the Design Aids for Steel Structures (Allowable Stress Design). She received her Chartered Engineer status from the Institution of Civil Engineers ICE in the UK in 2021 and is a registered chartered engineer and fellow in the Engineering Council in the UK.

Prof. Khalifa Saif Sultan Al-Jabri

Prof. Khalifa Al-Jabri is a professor in civil and architectural engineering at Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. He earned his BSc from Sultan Qaboos University and his MSc and PhD from The University of Sheffield, UK.

Throughout his career, he has held various academic and administrative positions, including serving as the head of the department of civil and architectural engineering. Notably, he was ranked among the world's top 2% influential scientists by Stanford University and received "The Order of Royal Commendation (2nd class)" from the Sultan of Oman.

Prof. Al-Jabri's research focuses on material behaviour at elevated temperatures, utilisation of waste materials in civil engineering, seismic hazard assessment, and sustainable construction materials. He has published extensively and led numerous research projects, contributing significantly to his field.

Additionally, he holds fellowships in prestigious engineering institutions and serves in key roles in international engineering bodies. Prof. Al-Jabri's remarkable contributions are evident through his extensive citations and influential publications.

Prof. Khalifa Al-Jabri FICE is also the ICE representative in Oman.

Jamal Ali

Mr. Ali has over 30 years’ experience of design, feasibility studies, construction supervision and management in water supply, irrigation, sewage treatment, surface water and sewage disposal. He was also involved in design and construction of various sizes pumping stations. His experience includes working in Qatar, UAE, Kingdom of Bahrain, KSA, UK, Hong Kong, and Australia. His area of experience includes extensive knowledge of sewer renovation using various techniques. He has experience in institutional strengthening and reorganization of government Institution in readiness for outsourcing and privatization.

He is a Charted Civil Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers. He holds a degree in civil engineering and a master’s in civil engineering from the UK.

Tom Olliver

Tom is based in Saudi Arabia and is an experienced director of rail projects. He led the planning and readiness for tournament rail operations on behalf of the Host Country for the successful FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. Previously, he specialised in the design and development of large-scale tunnel and rail programmes.

Tom has unique broad-based knowledge of the development and operation of rail networks. He has significant experience in the development of complex rail programmes from initial feasibility and approvals, through the design and construction stages, onto the commencement of revenue service, and event time operations including the safe movement of passengers and customer information.

Tom is a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, he is also a Chartered Manager and Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.