As part of its continuous efforts to empower Emirati women, Emirates Transport (ET) recently promoted Sheikha Al Sharqi, to the position of School Transport Operations Supervisor, making her the first woman in the company’s 41-year history to be appointed to such a vital field post.
Faryal Tawakul, Acting CEO of Emirates Transport, expressed her pride in the efforts of the Emirati female employees in the company and their pivotal role in achieving its strategic goals.
She said: “This appointment confirms that Emirati women can fulfil all the responsibilities and challenges in the workplace and adds to the ET’s rich record of female achievements, despite the field nature of the company’s business and services system.”
Commenting on her new assignment as School Transport Operations Supervisor; Sheikha Al Sharqi expressed her delight to be the first woman in the company’s history to be chosen to perform this vital supervisory position.
She said: “I’m excited and motivated to start my new position, knowing the importance it carries to ensure a smooth and safe school transport process for our dear students.
“I’m grateful for the support I have received from all of my colleagues in the company, whether at the level of operations, supporting departments, as well as senior management,” she added.
A mother of four children, Sheikha Al Sharqi has a variety of professional experiences spanning 12 years. She started her career as a volunteer in several care and rehabilitation centres for people of determination, in Fujairah, before she joined the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security. She joined Emirates Transport in 2016 as a Contracts Administrator and was later promoted to a Key Account Specialist before she assumed her current duties as Operations Supervisor in the company’s school transport sector in the Emirate Abu Dhabi to be the first female employee to undertake this task out of 27 current operations supervisors in the company.
The position of School Transport Operations Supervisor is a demanding field work which includes overseeing the implementation of transport services, organizing bus routes and monitoring their implementation, communicating with customers to resolve any obstacles, in addition to monitoring and following-up periodic maintenance operations to ensure the regularity and efficiently of service.
Al Sharqi’s will be directly responsible for supervising 1,570 employees including 772 drivers and 798 bus supervisors. She will also be responsible for the movement of 791 buses making 1,930 daily trips to serve 27,020 students in the emirate. It is worth noting that Emirates Transport has about 26,000 employees across the country, including 5,676 women, 27 of whom are working in the leadership and senior leadership categories.
