Nine Lebanese businesswomen shared their experiences in U.S. mentoring programs at a gathering hosted by U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Bill Grant on June 20, 2007.  The programs included a summit for women business leaders held  in Washington D.C. from May 21-25, 2007 and a mentoring partnership sponsored by Fortune's Most Powerful Women and the Department of State from April 30-May 25, 2007.  Both programs aim to encourage women's success through mentoring, workshops and networking. 

Lebanon's representatives to the Women Business Leaders Summit included:

• Ms. Asmahan Zein Abboud, Country Manager of Aramex International
• Ms. Zakie Karam, General Manager of IDMI
• Ms. Maria Raidy, Vice President of Raidy Printing Press
• Ms. Christine Assouad Sfeir, Owner and Manager of Meeting Point
• Ms. Kawkab Sinno, External Relations and Professional Services Manager of Transmed
• Ms. Nahla Zaatari, Head of Conferences for the Al Iktissal Wal Aamal Group

Participants to FORTUNE/ Department of State's International Women Leaders Mentoring Partnership included:

• Ms. Marie-Jo Raidy, Creative Director at Raidy Printing Press
• Ms. Huda Saba, Owner and Designer of ODASA
• Ms. Afaf Zeidan, Customer Service Manager at CreditCard Services Company

The Women's Business Leaders Summit followed a first meeting in Jordan last February where 50 women business executives from Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, the Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates were joined by 50 American women business leaders.  The US part of the summit was part of a public-private sector outreach program, sponsored by the Department of State, aiming to promote partnerships between American and Middle Eastern women business communities.  Each woman was partnered with a US company for the first two days.  Back in Washington D.C.,    the Lebanese delegation met with several government officials, including First Lady Laura Bush, and attended special program sessions at Georgetown University.

Three Lebanese business women participated in the International Women Leaders Mentoring Partnership, organized by the NGO Vital Voices Global Partnership. This program provided the participants with opportunities to develop their management and business skills while witnessing first hand the US business environment.  The program was launched with a three-day orientation and leadership training session in Washington D.C. and meetings with government officials, including Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Karen Hughes, Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs Dina Powell, Under Secretary of State for Management Henrietta Fore and Assistant Secretary of State of International Organizations Kristen Silverberg, as well as academia and representatives of business associations. 

The second phase consisted in pairing each of the 32 participants with one of Fortune's Most Powerful Women Leaders.  The participants departed to 18 different locations across the United States to observe best practices and cultivate a valuable network of American professionals. Finally, a two-day debriefing took place in New York where the participants met with business leaders, evaluated their experiences and developed follow-up activities.