Programme

Career:

• 2007–2012: Editor-in-chief of the social and political magazine Russia United;
• 2009–2019: Deputy of the Municipal Assembly Vladimirsky Municipal District, St. Petersburg;
• 2010–2016: Part-time management positions in marketing and advertising in banking;
• Since March 2016 to June 2019: Russian Export Center, Director of External Communications;
• Since June 2019 to present: Senior Vice President, Director of External Relations Directorate, Promsvyazbank PJSC.

Deputy Chairperson of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation
Born on 29 June 1950 in the city of Nizhnyaya Salda, Sverdlovsk Region. In 1972, she graduated from the Sergei Kirov Urals Polytechnic Institute with a degree in engineering and economics. PhD in Economics and DSc in Social Sciences, professor. For 20 years she was engaged in teaching and research. Author of over 150 papers on economic, social and political issues.
Since 1990 – delegate, Deputy Speaker (1992–1993) of the Sverdlovsk Regional Parliamentarian Council.
1994–1996 – Deputy of the Council of Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Chairperson of the Federation Council Committee on Social Policy.
1996–1997 – Deputy of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Subcommittee on International Humanitarian, Scientific and Cultural Cooperation of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs.
Since 1997 – Deputy and since 2000 – First Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Affairs of the Russian Federation.
April 2003 – March 2004 – Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation on Social Affairs.
April 2004 – December 2007 – Chairperson of the Social Insurance Fund of the Russian Federation.
On 2 December 2007, she was elected a deputy to the Fifth State Duma, Deputy Speaker of the State Duma Committee on Budget and Taxes.
On 4 December 2011, she was elected a deputy to the Sixth State Duma, First Deputy Chair of the State Duma Committee on Labour, Social Policy and Veteran Affairs.
Since 22 September 2014, she is a Representative of the executive authority of the Voronezh Region in the Federation Council. Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, member of the Federation Council Committee on Social Policy. Initiator and drafter of more than 40 laws, including laws on social protection. Full State Counsellor 1st Class of the Russian Federation. Decorated with state orders and medals.

Natalia Popova, First Deputy СEO of the Non-State Development Institute “Innopraktika”, President of Vision Media Center LLC, graduated from Finance Academy under the Government of the Russian Federation and the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Area Studies of Moscow State University. Natalia is a member of the Boards of Directors of ITECMA LLC, VEB Ventures LLC, also the Supervisory Boards of the INTC Composite Valley Foundation and MSP Bank JSC, as well as the Board of Trustees of the School Unit of the “Phystech XXI” cluster and the autonomous non-profit educational organization “Phystech-lyceum” named after P.L. Kapitsa. In addition, she is the chairman of the board of directors of IAC OJSC, the co-chairman of the Coordinating Council for the introduction of innovative Russian products into the production and economic activities of Gazprom. Natalia is a member of the Council for the Implementation of the Federal Scientific and Technical Program for the Development of Agriculture for 2017-2025; the working group which provide support to small and medium businesses in high-tech sectors of the economy, including those introducing innovations, implementing projects in the field of import substitution and (or) producing export products and services; to the Expert council for the development of financial instruments and non-financial measures to support enterprises of Russia's defense industry under the Commission of the State Duma on legal support for the development of organizations in the defense industry of Russia. Natalia is the originator and the host of Innopraktika media projects, including such projects as “Dom uchenyh” (lit.: The House of Scientists) in cooperation with “Kultura” TV channel, “Nauka” (lit.: Science) in cooperation with “Russia-24” TV channel, also a member of the committee for preparation and implementation of the global project "Russian Seasons". Since December 2019, Natalia Popova has been holding the position of the Ombudsman representing interests of high-tech leading companies, established on the Commissioner for Entrepreneurs' Rights at the President of the Russian Federation institution basis.

Dr. Hala H. Elsaid was sworn in as Egypt’s Minister of Planning and Economic Development on December 22, 2019. Prior to this appointment, she served as the Minister of Planning, Monitoring and Administrative Reform between February 2017 and December 2019. Dr. Elsaid who also serves as Chair of The Sovereign Fund of Egypt is a prominent Economist and Academic Figure, recognized as the Best Arab Minister by the Arab Government Excellence Award in November 2020.
During her tenor, she led the implementation of the National Sustainable Development Strategy (Egypt Vision 2030) in partnership with bilateral and multilateral stakeholders, private sector and civil society in line with the UN Sustainable Development Strategy and the Africa 2063 Agenda. In 2021, Dr. Elsaid initiated the National Structural Reform Program with macro-sectoral reforms focusing on seven priority sectors that are labor intensive and have significant contribution in achieving economic growth and prosperity, supporting the transition to a green and circular economy. As Minister of Planning and Economic Development, she launched several programs for capacity building, gender inclusion and youth empowerment including the Women in Leadership Positions Program, the Leadership for Government Excellence Program and Rowad 2030 which aims to enable youth and support entrepreneurship and job creation.
She encourages the effective monitoring and evaluation of all policies and initiatives taking place to promote sustainable development through the development of policy trackers linked to the Sustainable Development Goals and the adoption of the National Strategy for Development of Statistics, to ensure administrative decisions are evidence based. In addition, she launched several academic contributions that include a wide range of internationally acclaimed research papers, studies and reports on various economic topics, most notably studies on financial and banking reform, international finance, privatization and economic reform, including the first Financing Sustainable Development in Egypt report, the first of its kind FfD report and a manual for Gender-Responsive Sustainable Development Planning.
Dr. Hala El-Said is a prominent female banking figure, serving as a member of the Central Bank's Board of Directors and as the Executive Director of the Egyptian Banking Institute for eight consecutive years, managing the Institute with a promising vision to establish a professional training arm for the Egyptian banking system that applies international best practices in the development of technical and administrative skills for financial and banking professionals in Egypt and the Middle East and North Africa. During this period, she led a group of experts and consultants at the Institute to obtain international accreditation to become the first accredited banking and financial training institute in Egypt and the Middle East and North Africa region (2006 -2008).
Dr. Elsaid has also held several positions, including Advisor to the Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt, a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Central Bank's Anti-Money Laundering Unit, and a Member of the Board of Directors of the Arab African International Bank.
Dr. ElSaid received her PhD in Economics in 1989 with Highest Honors from the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University. She was the first elected Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Political Science in 2011 and Cairo University’s Deputy President for Scientific Research and Exterior Relations from 2013 to 2016. Over her efficacious academic journey, her contributions in education, inclusion and youth empowerment pave the way to achieving sustainable development and economic growth.