MEACA's "The Ethical Explorer"
Middle East & Africa Compliance Association
MEACA elevates the discussion about Ethics & Compliance across the region.
Dear members,
We wish you all a Ramadan Kareem. May the blessed month of Ramadan bring peace, happiness, and prosperity to you and your family.
MEACA Iftar 2025
We would like to organise a MEACA Iftar for all of you on the 12.03. If you are interested to join, please sign up here.
Highlights from February
We had several events in February and would like to share some of the highlights with you!
Tom Hardin, Tipper X – FBI’s secret agent
During Ankura 's and Middle East & Africa Compliance Association Forensic Forum Breakfast, Tom Hardin , also known as Tipper X, shared his harrowing journey from a successful hedge fund professional to becoming a key cooperating witness in a major FBI insider trading investigation. His story highlighted the severe personal and professional consequences of ethical transgressions, including loss of career, reputation, and personal relationships.
Key lessons from Tom's narrative included:
The session aimed to equip professionals with insights to navigate ethical challenges, strengthen institutional integrity, and build a robust compliance framework. Tom's courage in sharing his story was acknowledged and appreciated for its educational value on ethics and compliance.
GRC Summit eg 2025
The GRC Summit.eg is an annual event that unites over 400 leaders, experts, and academics to explore innovative approaches to digital governance.
Scheduled for February 13 to 15, 2025, in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, the summit aims to empower leaders with the knowledge and tools necessary to build resilient and effective digital governance frameworks.
Attendees had the? opportunities for learning, networking, discovering new solutions, skill development, and obtaining professional certifications. The organizing committee, led by founder Bishoy Ebeid , has curated a lineup of distinguished speakers, including Co-Founder and co-Chairman, Tomell deSilva Ceasar , Ahmed Issa , Former Minister of Tourism and current Executive Board Member and Deputy CEO of Banque Misr and many many others.
Middle East & Africa Compliance Association is proud to be an education partner of the GRC Summit Egypt and the organization looks forward to expanding its presence in Egypt, bringing together the formidable compliance community in the country.?
Trade compliance and the impact of the Trump presidency in the Middle East & Africa
On Wednesday, February 26th, DLA Piper , in collaboration with the Middle East & Africa Compliance Association hosted a networking event at the St. Regis in Downtown Dubai. The event focused on discussing the impact of Trump's policies in the Middle East and China.
The evening's discussions centered around the latest trade restrictions and tariffs imposed by Trump. Additionally, the partners from DLA Piper talked about the current sanctions on Syria, Iran, and Russia, which are expected to remain in place for some time. There was also speculation that Trump might impose further sanctions/tariffs against China. It was interesting to learn that the U.S. can impose sanctions on countries that threaten its interests, such as through unfair trade practices. These sanctions are intended to deter bad behavior through economic penalties.
Additionally, the US is committed to boosting investments in sectors like technology, renewable energy, and infrastructure, creating job opportunities and driving innovation in the Middle East. Further they plan to reduce restrictions for US investments in the UAE and increase the economic collaboration.
It was a very engaging presentation, and a big thank you goes to the guest speaker Christine Daya and Nicholas Klein , and of course to Ramsey Jurdi for putting together such an interesting event.
Further Announcement of 2025
The Board of MEACA is still not yet complete. We are still seeking one more motivated and ambitious individual to join the MEACA board. If you believe in MEACA and the exciting journey ahead of us, we encourage you to reach out to one of our board members.
We are eager to find someone who shares our vision and passion, and we aim to make a decision by the end of March. If you think you have what it takes to contribute to our journey, please don't hesitate to get in touch. Let's make this year truly remarkable together!
Join a MEACA Sub-Committee and Make an Impact!
We are proud to announce the establishment of the MEACA Sub-Committees and we want you to join them!
Are you passionate about governance, compliance, and professional development? Do you want to contribute your expertise, build new skills, and expand your professional network? We invite you to join one of MEACA’s sub-committees and play an active role in shaping the future of compliance in the Middle East and Africa.
Each sub-committee serves a unique function within MEACA, and your participation will help drive meaningful initiatives that benefit our community. Here’s a brief look at the different sub-committees you can join:
1. Finance & Audit Sub-Committee
This sub-committee ensures MEACA’s financial sustainability by managing budgets, financial planning, and audits. If you have expertise in finance, accounting, or risk management, your skills can help maintain the financial health of our organization.
2. Events & Sponsorship Sub-Committee
Are you passionate about event planning and networking? This team organizes MEACA’s conferences, workshops, and networking sessions, ensuring that we deliver high-quality learning and engagement opportunities while securing sponsorships to fund key initiatives.
3. Membership Services Sub-Committee
This sub-committee enhances the member experience at MEACA by managing inquiries, processing applications, and creating engagement and retention strategies. If you love working with people and developing community-building initiatives, this is the perfect role for you!
4. Country Rep Sub-Committee
Represent MEACA in your country! This team works to establish local connections, promote MEACA’s initiatives, and address region-specific compliance challenges. If you’re passionate about growing MEACA’s presence and engaging with regional stakeholders, we’d love to have you on board.
5. Women in MEACA Sub-Committee
Dedicated to empowering women in compliance, this committee creates mentorship programs, industry-specific platforms, and career development initiatives. Join us in amplifying women’s voices and fostering an inclusive compliance community.
6. Governance & Admin Sub-Committee
This sub-committee ensures MEACA operates effectively and remains compliant with governance best practices. If you have experience in policy development, governance, or regulatory compliance, this team plays a crucial role in maintaining transparency and accountability within the organization.
How to Join?
If you’re interested in contributing to one of these dynamic sub-committees, please email us at [email protected]?with your preferred committee and a brief statement on how you’d like to contribute.
Together, we can strengthen compliance, governance, and professional development in the Middle East and Africa. We look forward to welcoming you to one of our teams!
MEACA Whatsapp group
Once again we would like to share with you the recently launched MEACA WhatsApp group. It is growing day by day! Stay up to date with the latest events and news around Middle East & Africa Compliance Association. Within this group, you always will be the first one to hear about upcoming events, new job posts and further interesting news around the region.
If you did not join yet, feel free to click or scan the barcode to join the MEACA networking group.
Important Announcement ??
We are happy to announce that Covington & Burling LLP is the first offical sponsor of Middle East & Africa Compliance Association
Covington & Burling LLP is a leading international law firm with over 1,300 lawyers and advisors across 14 global offices. They are known for their high-quality work, deep industry knowledge, and expertise in complex regulatory, compliance, advisory, and contentious matters.
With offices in Dubai and Johannesburg, they provide enhanced capabilities in the Middle East and Africa, leveraging over 30 years of experience in the region. They have more than 150 lawyers and policy advisors working on challenging matters in the MEA region, specializing in key compliance areas such as anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, antitrust, cybersecurity, data privacy, human rights, and export controls & sanctions.
We thank Covington & Burling LLP once more for believing in MEACA and supporting us along the way. Together, we will organize many insightful webinars and networking events to bring together legal and compliance professionals from the region!i
We hope further sponsors will join and support our journey to empower compliance professional with the skills, resources and knowledge to be effective ambassadors of good will within their respective companies and communities at the MEA Region.
The Ethics Corner
Ask the Ethics Guy! By Bruce Weinstein, Ph.D.
Another great article by Dr. Bruce Weinstein, The Ethics Guy?.
The Ethics of Asking for Forgiveness Instead of Permission
“It is better to ask for forgiveness than permission.” We hear this a lot when the conversation turns to the ethics of stealing intellectual property.
Here's a disturbing, true story along these lines.
I was at a conference and one of the speakers included images from the movie The Wizard of Oz in his presentation During the question-and-answer portion of the talk, I asked him, “How much does it cost to license those images?” I figured it was expensive.
Click here to read the full article.
Culture & Compliance Chronicles: How Cultural Understanding Empowers Compliance
We would like to share with you the very interesting podcast by Ropes & Gray LLP .
This episode of the Culture & Compliance Chronicles featured Nitish Upadhyaya from Ropes & Gray’s Insights Lab, Richard Bistrong of Front-Line Anti-Bribery LLC , and Tal M. Freilich, CCEP-I ,VP of Group Governance, Risk, and Compliance at 大昌华嘉集团 .
They explored:
Please click here for the full podcast. It is worth listening!
Practical tools and ideas from compliance people
When I was inhouse I was always interested in ideas and tools that would make our compliance program more effective.?That is why I started Compliance and Ethics: Ideas & Answers – a free, weekly newsletter with ideas and answers that make your compliance life easier.??It is written by??experienced, global compliance people, for compliance people.??We deal with practical questions like how to protect whistleblowers, how to evaluate whether your program actually works, and one of the really tough ones – how to use incentives in your compliance program.????We also have a free website with years of ideas and sources to make your difficult task easier.??We have no paywalls, fees or dues (we aren’t selling anything). We also offer you an opportunity to share your expertise.??Do you have an idea that would help others in the compliance & ethics world???Tell us about it. Our website is visited from all over the world – compliance people from over 150 countries. It’s easy & free – just click this link -https://ideasandanswers.com
Upcoming Events
Managing an Anti-Corruption Program in the Current U.S. Enforcement Environment
It was quite a shock when President Trump issued the Executive Order to halt the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).
This move has left many concerned about the implications for their Anti-Corruption Compliance Programs.
To address these concerns, MEACA, in collaboration with the legal experts from DLA Piper, will conduct an in-depth analysis of the impact of the Trump Administration’s Executive Order on Corporate Compliance Programs.
Date: March 11, 2025
Time: 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm (Dubai time)
Duration: 1 hour
Location: Webinar
Register: here
Don't miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights and ensure your compliance program is up to date.?Click and sign up now!
We are very excited to announce that toegther with Nielsonsmith Ltd. we extend the number of Compliance Conferences in the MEA Region!
We are very happy to announce another conference in Africa. With Ghana and Kenya now we expend the Compliance Conference to further countries. In 2025, professionals in both the private and public sectors will face significant challenges due to increasing market pressures, heightened enforcement, and international cooperation on anti-corruption matters. With a complex landscape of new laws, regulations, and guidance, practitioners are seeking effective and innovative compliance practices.
Date: May 7th - May 8th, 2025
Duration: 8:00 am-17:00 pm
Location: Accra, Ghana (Hotel tbd)
Register: here
In an era marked by increasing global financial scrutiny and regulatory demands, this conference serves as a pivotal gathering for professionals dedicated to combating money laundering and enforcing sanctions. We are excited to add the conference in Morocco to the list of Compliance Conferences in cooperation with Nielsonsmith Ltd.
Date: May 20th - May 21st, 2025
Duration: 8:00 am-17:00 pm
Location: Casablanca, Morocco (Hotel tbd)
Register: here
This conference has been produced with you the compliance specialist ‘on the ground’ in mind. It is designed to allow you to learn from your peers and benchmark your program with not only the global leaders but also with local prominent companies. This is the must attend conference in the region where you will meet eminent speakers from the UAE, Saudi Arabia as well as other GCC and leading global specialists, we look forward to meeting you
Date: May 26th - May 27th, 2025
Duration: 8:00 am-17:00 pm
Location: St.Regis Hotel Downtown Dubai, UAE
Register: here
The US, UK, EU and now China have far reaching export controls, sanctions and anti-corruption initiatives, match this with local regulations and you have a perfect storm of compliance to navigate through. Our annual Sanctions, Anti-Corruption & Export Controls Compliance in the Middle East conference (SACEC) is the one place where you, as a local compliance specialist, can find a way through.
Date: May 28h - May 9th, 2025
Duration: 8:00 am-17:00 pm
Location: St.Regis Hotel Downtown Dubai, UAE
Register: here
In case you are interested to organize a Compliance Event together with MEACA, please reach out to Tomell deSilva Ceasar and Elvis Angyiembe.
Thank you to everyone for reading The Ethical Explorer, we hope you liked one of the topics.
In case you did not subscribe to the Newsletter yet, do not waste time and click here.
Further visit our LinkedIn page or website to stay up to date about upcoming events and exciting career opportunities. Become a member of MEACA and share best practice with other members or just join our events for some interesting compliance insights. Click here to become a member or just contact us under [email protected].
Reimagining the practice of legal and compliance using through the lens of culture and complexity
5 天前Middle East & Africa Compliance Association - thanks for sharing the podcast - would love to hear what topics your members wish our guests could cover on future episodes!
FCPA, Anti-Bribery, Ethics & Compliance Consultant ?? Corporate Keynote & Workshop Speaker ?? Award-Winning E -Learning Training Producer ? Providing A Front-Line Perspective on Ethics, Compliance, Risk, & Integrity
6 天前Thank you for sharing the webinar with Tal M. Freilich, CCEP-I- much appreciated Middle East & Africa Compliance Association!!!!
Good governance, Education, project management, compliance ,Leadership, Human Rights ,climate change, PWDs, Road safety, youth Engagement, counseling,Entrepreneurship , Agribusiness,Skills & Advocacy.
6 天前Thanks for sharing