Hayat Sindi

Hayat Sindi is Advisor to the President of Saudi Arabia's Islamic Development Bank Group on Science, Technology and Innovation. A leading biotechnologist and champion of science and technology in the Middle East, she works to create close links between science and social impact. She is also a Goodwill Ambassador for Sciences at UNESCO and a member of the UN Technological Facilitation Mechanism's 10-Member Group.

Dr Sindi co-founded a non-profit organisation called Diagnostics For All, which creates innovative, inexpensive, point-of-care diagnostic devices for people in impoverished regions. In 2011, she launched i2, an Institute for imagination and ingenuity, to encourage innovation among young people specifically male and female scientists, technologists and engineers.

Dr Sindi is a recipient of the Clinton Global Citizen Awards for Leadership in Civil Society for her work to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship among young people in the Middle East. In 2013, she was one of the first 30 women to be appointed to the Shura Council, Saudi Arabia's highest consultative body.