The Dean’s Lecture Series will be hosting Dr. Kamel Abdallah, Group Chief Executive Officer of Baladna Food Industries. He will speaking on “Managing sustainability in national food security programs”. 

The Dean’s Lecture Series is the principal forum for eminent industry practitioners and government officials to bring their knowledge and perspectives to Carnegie Mellon, and to broaden students’ understanding of important issues.

About the speaker: 

Dr. Kamel Abdallah is the CEO of Baladna Food Industries, the largest dairy and juice beverage producer in Qatar. Prior to joining Baladna, Dr. Kamel Abdallah served as Managing Board Director/CEO in several roles in the region including Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of Aujan Industries/Rani Investment (now Aujan-Coca Cola), the largest private beverage player in the Middle East (Rani, Vimto, Barbican) which included 3 beverage factories and 2 can making factories, as well the CEO of Exeed Industries, an Abu Dhabi based Industrial/Agricultural family office group with farms and feed mills among its 17 companies. He was also the Managing Director of AATCO Food Industries in Oman, the largest GCC manufacturer of wet condiments food in the region.

Dr. Kamel remains integrated with academia, where he has served as Asst Vice President of the American University of Beirut; and Professor of Strategy and Finance as well as being a tenured Prof and department chair at accredited business schools in the USA. He is a frequent guest lecturer at local universities.

With his proven leadership and expertise, Dr. Kamel is leading the strategic growth of Baladna and driving Baladna’s growth to the next level – ensuring Baladna is a powerhouse brand with a dominant market share, and supporting the transformation of national food security programs regionally.

Dr. Kamel holds a Ph.D in Strategic Management from the Ohio State University; Master’s Degree in International Trade and Finance from the American University in Washington D.C. and Ohio State University; and a BA in Economics from the American University of Beirut. He has been awarded the Honorary title of Colonel by the Governor of Kentucky, as well as numerous awards in the US and the region. He is considered a Subject-Matter expert on regional food security programs and is a frequent speaker at investment and agriculture conferences in the GCC. Dr. Kamel is a mountaineer who has summited Mount Kalimanjaro, Atlas mountain, Mount Ararat, and the highest peeks in the Levant.