Bahrain's Batelco appoints its first female CEO

The first woman to hold a CEO position in Bahrain's telecoms industry has been named as Muna Al Hashemi.

Batelco chairman Sheikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced that Al Hashemi has been appointed as acting Bahrain CEO.

She takes over the lead role for the company's Bahrain operations from Group CEO Alan Whelan who has been managing both Bahrain and Batelco Group in recent months.

Al Hashemi has previously been head of Batelco's Consumer Division, a statement said.

Al Hashemi is also a board director at Umniah, Batelco Group's operation in Jordan, it added.

Whelan welcomed Al Hashemi to the Group's CEO team and said he looked forward to working alongside her as they "tackle the daily challenges of working in such a competitive environment as Bahrain".