Ahmed Embaby Leads Strong Egyptian Presence on Forbes Middle East’s Top Marketing Leaders 2026 List
Egyptian marketing executives dominated Forbes Middle East’s 2026 ranking of the region’s most influential Chief Marketing Officers, with 21 Egyptian leaders featured among 101 executives representing 100 major organizations across the Middle East.
At the forefront of the Egyptian contingent was Ahmed Embaby, Chief Marketing Officer of e& Egypt, whose inclusion highlights the growing influence of the telecommunications sector in shaping customer engagement, digital transformation, and brand innovation across the region.
Embaby was joined by several prominent Egyptian marketing leaders, including Romany Hafez of Commercial International Bank (CIB) and Dina Abu Taleb of the National Bank of Egypt (NBE), underscoring the strength of Egypt’s banking sector in adopting data-driven marketing strategies and advanced digital engagement models.
According to Forbes Middle East, the annual ranking reflects the increasingly strategic role marketing leaders play in driving business growth, strengthening brand value, and accelerating digital transformation initiatives. The publication noted that artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are becoming central to marketing decision-making and customer experience management across industries.
Egypt Tops Regional Representation
Egypt secured the highest representation on the list with 21 executives, outperforming all other nationalities featured in the ranking. The United Arab Emirates followed with 13 executives, while Saudi Arabia ranked third with 12.
The Egyptian leaders recognized in the ranking represent a broad range of sectors, including banking, telecommunications, real estate, financial services, hospitality, healthcare, and technology.
Among the executives featured from Egyptian organizations were Dina Attallah of Al Ahly Sabbour Developments, Fatma El Goly of Banque Misr, Hassan El Sada of Beltone Holding, Mai El Gammal of EFG Holding, Yousra Abidy of El Gouna and Orascom Development Egypt, Ahmed Nagm of Elsewedy Electric, Jehan El Goly of Housing and Development Bank, Abdelazim Othman of Nawy, Mohamed Eid Soliman of Pickalbatros Hotels & Resorts, Mohamed Fathy of PRIME Health Holdings, Ghada Hamouda of Qalaa Holdings, Nour El Zeiny of Suez Canal Bank, and Ayman Zohran of Talaat Moustafa Group Holding, among others.
The ranking also included Egyptian professionals leading marketing functions at major regional organizations outside Egypt, including Jacqueline El Baghdady of ADNOC Distribution, Caroline Tekla of Al Maryah Community Bank, Marwa Kaabour of Al Masaood Group, Farah Allamy of Global Fertility and Bnoon, and Basant Fouad Ismail of Valmore Holding.
AI Reshapes the Marketing Landscape
The accompanying Forbes study highlighted the accelerating adoption of artificial intelligence across marketing departments in the Middle East.
According to the report, 22.6% of companies now have a fully integrated and funded AI strategy within their marketing operations, while 47.7% have partially implemented AI initiatives. Another 24.27% are currently developing AI strategies, leaving only 5.44% of organizations without a formal AI roadmap.
The findings underscore the growing importance of AI-powered analytics, personalization, automation, and customer engagement tools in shaping modern marketing strategies across the region.
Ranking Methodology
Forbes Middle East said its selection process was based on several key criteria, including the size of marketing budgets overseen by executives, team leadership responsibilities, professional experience, campaign effectiveness, digital engagement performance, and the extent to which organizations leverage technology and artificial intelligence to enhance marketing outcomes.
The strong Egyptian showing in the 2026 ranking reflects the country’s expanding influence in regional marketing leadership, with executives such as Ahmed Embaby, Romany Hafez, and Dina Abu Taleb helping drive innovation and digital transformation across some of the Middle East’s most prominent organizations.