HE the Minister of Energy and Industry Dr Mohammed bin Saleh Al-Sada opened the BCI Middle East Conference in the presence of business continuity and professionals from across the Middle East and beyond.

In addressing the conference, HE Dr. Al Sada noted that, "Business Continuity Management, in today’s business environment is all about building and improving business resilience; it is about developing strategies and implementing plans to enable a business to recover from disruptions in an effective and efficient manner; it also focuses on ensuring that organizations are ultimately able to meet their objectives. " He added that, "We in Qatar are blessed with security, stability and prosperity under the visionary leadership of HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, and the guidance of HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Abdulla bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al-Thani".

James McAlister, vice-chair, Business Continuity Institute and chair of the BCI Middle East Conference said, "The Middle East is one of the most creative, innovative and growing business continuity regions of the world. The businesses that thrive there have the foresight and courage to acquire professionals from across the globe to enrich their resilience experience.

"A significant influence in their quest for knowledge is the BCI Middle East Conference. It brings together an amazing knowledge pool of international experts creating a unique platform for learning, networking and exposure to future resilience solutions." From his side Abdullatif Ali Al-Yafei, Qatar BCM Guideline Steering Committee Chairman and Member of BCI Qatar Forum has said, "We are pleased for this conference to be opened by HE the Minster of Energy and Industry and to give welcome speech to the participants. The Conference is attended from all public and private businesses in Qatar which includes Ministry of Interior, semi-government bodies, the energy sector, oil and gas, telecommunications, ICT, banking, private and public sectors to participate in the conference to benefit from the researches and presentations delivered by international expertise in the field of Business Continuity.

Abdullatif also added, "During the conference, HE the Minister of Energy and Industry has launched the first edition of Qatari Business Continuity Management Guidelines, which is the first of its kind in the State of Qatar. The guideline aims to provide a detailed explanation of the standard of the International Standards Organization ISO 22301 in the field of Business Continuity with practical examples to help organizations and companies operating in Qatar wishing to apply the business continuity program the right way. The list includes models and procedures have been applied in some companies in Qatar. The Guideline was written by number of experts in the field of Business Continuity from all different sectors in Qatar.

The Business Continuity Institute is the world's leading Institute for continuity and resilience professionals and holding this conference in the Middle East is recognition of the importance that the industry has to the region, and also demonstrates the value that the region has to the Institute where almost ten per cent of its global membership comes from.

The BCI Middle East Conference opened on the 11th May and will last for two days. The theme is sustaining value through business continuity and a packed programme consisting of local and international speakers are discussing a wide range of topics that will enable delegates to explore global challenges while considering regional solutions.

The BCI Middle East Conference is the second conference that the BCI has hosted in the region following the success of the 2014 conference in Dubai. Drawing on the expertise of the World’s leading Institute for business continuity and resilience professionals, delegates will explore global challenges considering regional solutions. The two day conference programme will examine core business continuity practices enabling both new and experienced practitioners to share ideas and learn about the latest trends through a combination of case study presentations, interactive sessions and plenary addresses delivered by innovative Thought Leaders.