Tech News
GCC BOARD GENDER INDEX 2026 HIGHLIGHTS CONTINUED PROGRESS AS WOMEN’S REPRESENTATION REACHES 7% ACROSS GCC BOARDS


Heriot-Watt University and Aurora50 have today released the ‘GCC Board Gender Index Report 2026‘, marking the third edition of this comprehensive study of women’s representation on the boards of publicly listed companies in the GCC.
For the third consecutive year, the report remains the only index of its kind to provide a unified view of board composition across all GCC local stock exchanges. The findings continue to highlight steady, incremental progress towards more inclusive corporate leadership across the region.
Key findings from this report are as follows:
- As of January 2026, women hold 7% of board positions across the GCC, up from 6.9% in 2025, reflecting a 1.4% year-on-year increase. While growth remains gradual, the data points to sustained momentum in advancing gender diversity in boardrooms.
- The index now covers 759 publicly listed companies across the GCC. Over the past year, the total number of board seats has increased from 5,668 to 5,755, representing a 1.5% rise.
- A total of 341 women now hold 403 board positions, up from 334 women and 390 seats in 2025. This reflects growth in both the number of women directors (2.1%) and board positions held (3.3%) across the GCC. Some women hold more than one directorship, indicating a broader increase in representation and participation at the board level.
- Country-level data shows that the UAE continues to lead the region for the third year running, with women holding 15% of board seats across its three stock exchanges, compared to 14.7% in 2025. Bahrain retains second position, with women occupying 10.5% of board seats, followed by Oman at 7%.
Country-wise, the percentage of board positions held by women at publicly listed companies across the GCC is as follows:
UAE: 15.0% (191 of 1,274 seats)
Bahrain: 10.5% (36 of 342 seats)
Oman: 7.0% (51 of 731 seats)
Kuwait: 5.6% (52 of 927 seats)
Qatar: 3.2% (15 of 467 seats)
Saudi Arabia: 2.9% (58 of 2,014 seats)
This year’s report also introduces sector-level analysis across 12 industries in all six GCC countries. Notably, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are the only countries in the region where women hold board positions across every sector. The financial sector accounts for the highest number of female board seats, followed by the industrial sector.
The top three sectors in the UAE by number of board seats held by women are Financial services, with 86 of 564 positions; the Industrial sector, with 35 of 214; and Consumer Staples, with 15 of 94.
Commenting on the launch of the GCC Board Gender Index 2026, Her Highness Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, Chairperson of diversity and inclusion agency Aurora50, said, “Aurora50 is proud to partner for a third time with Heriot-Watt University Dubai on this authoritative GCC-wide benchmark that continues to deliver consistent tracking and provides transparent data in and for the region.
“It’s particularly encouraging to see the UAE’s progress in this space, with women’s board representation in the nation growing from 3.5% to 15% since 2020. This is a true testament to the vision of the UAE’s leadership in advancing gender equity in the workplace. Women in board positions bring broader perspectives, stronger governance, and significant organisational growth – at a time when the world demands resilient, adaptive business leaders, my hope is that the value of diversity will continue to be recognised and leveraged.”
Provost and Vice Principal of Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Professor Dame Heather McGregor, said, “The GCC Board Gender Index has, over time, become an important benchmark for understanding how boardrooms across the region are evolving. What stands out in this year’s findings is not just the increase in representation but also the consistency of that progress, underpinned by a growing breadth of data and insights.
The UAE continues to demonstrate what is possible with sustained focus, but there is a clear opportunity to accelerate more broadly across the region. Our collaboration with Aurora50 is grounded in a shared belief that rigorous, transparent data can play a meaningful role in shaping better outcomes. It is encouraging to see the region continuing to move in the right direction, and I am keen to build on this progress through our ongoing work, informed conversations and contribution to long-term, systemic change in board composition across the GCC.’
The GCC Board Gender Index, supported by Board Intelligence, AlixPartners and Grant Thornton, includes detailed data on board directors. Each company and director is uniquely identified to ensure accuracy and avoid duplication, particularly when companies are listed on multiple exchanges or directors serve on multiple boards. This approach enables the report to serve as a single, authoritative source of data for researchers, policymakers and industry stakeholders, while also elevating the visibility of women currently serving on boards and recognising the region’s ongoing progress.
Tech News
OPTRO LAUNCHES ‘OPTRO PARTNER CONNECT’ TO POWER GLOBAL GRC ECOSYSTEM GROWTH

Optro (formerly AuditBoard), the leading AI-powered GRC Intelligence Platform empowering enterprises to transform risk into opportunity, has announced the formal launch of Optro Partner Connect. The new partner program offers partners flexible ways to go to market, a comprehensive suite of enablement, certification, technical, and co-marketing support, and a clear, predictable path to expand into new markets, deepen their service offerings, and drive lasting customer outcomes.
Optro Partner Connect replaces legacy frameworks with a modular design centered around distinct partner tracks, initially launching with Advisory Partners and Solution Providers, and a transparent tier structure in which benefits grow as partners do. Because benefits are tiered, partners will know exactly what they can access and unlock at each stage of their journey with Optro. Supporting every partner is a dedicated Partner Center of Excellence (PCoE): a team solely focused on partner success that guides firms through onboarding and ongoing “everboarding,” helping partners reach their first wins sooner and maintain a clear line of sight on their next stage of growth.
“Partners are a critical growth engine for Optro, and Optro Partner Connect ensures our ecosystem’s experience matches the enterprise-grade quality of our platform,” said Scott Whitlock, Global VP of Alliances and Channels at Optro. “By moving away from transaction-only metrics and adopting a holistic evaluation of capacity and competency, we are giving our partners a clear blueprint to build highly profitable services practices around our GRC Intelligence Platform.”
A differentiator of the program is Optro’s roadmap to weave an AI layer throughout the partner experience to give partners back time and help them win by automating repeatable manual tasks, surfacing real-time co-sell guidance in the field, and personalizing each partner’s onboarding so they can spend less time on administration and more time on value creation.
Key Program Highlights At-A-Glance
- Flexible Tracks & Engagement Models: Partners choose how they go to market across the Advisory and Solution Provider tracks, referring, selling, or servicing with a transparent tier structure, a flexible legal framework, and recognized status as they grow. Financial and servicing incentives reward that momentum, and a services-rich platform offers eligible partners room to build a high-value practice across the full customer lifecycle — from implementation and advisory through managed services.
- Enablement, Expertise, and Market Presence: A comprehensive benefits suite spanning role-based training and certification, deep technical and co-sell support, and co-branded marketing resources. Beyond a searchable partner directory that helps customers find them, qualified partners have a path to build their own solutions, integrations, and accelerators with Optro — turning their expertise into valuable IP.
- A Strategic Voice for Optro: Through continuous feedback loops and a formal Partner Advisory Board, invited partners can participate in roadmap and go-to-market strategy discussions, helping to impact the future of connected GRC alongside Optro’s leadership rather than just delivering it.
“Our collaboration with Optro helps us transform how our clients handle audit and compliance,” said Adam Pajakowski, Principal at Crowe. “Through this new partner program, we can continue to help companies move away from outdated, manual processes. We look forward to expanding our work together and continuing to drive great results for our joint clients.”
“We’re excited about the launch of Optro Partner Connect and the added structure it brings to an already strong collaboration,” said Andrew Struthers-Kennedy, Global Lead, CAE Solutions, Protiviti. “The program introduces clearer alignment, more formal recognition, and a scalable framework for how we work together, which we believe will help drive greater consistency and impact as both organizations continue to grow.”
Optro Partner Connect formally goes live today. Comprehensive program briefs, regional guides, and deal registration resources are now available to active partners via a unified, updated partner portal. To learn more or apply to join Optro Partner Connect, visit optro.ai.
Tech News
DXC INTRODUCES DXC PRIVATE CLOUD+, BRINGING GREATER CONTROL, SECURITY, AND FLEXIBILITY TO ENTERPRISE CLOUD
DXC Technology (NYSE: DXC), a leading enterprise technology and innovation partner, has announced that its DXC Private Cloud+ is now generally available. The solution delivers public cloud–like flexibility and pricing while maintaining full control over sensitive data and workloads. Powered by Dell Technologies infrastructure like servers, storage, and cyber resilience solutions and operated by DXC OASIS, DXC’s intelligent orchestration platform, Private Cloud+ helps organizations innovate more easily while still meeting strict requirements for data security, compliance, and sovereignty, at a time when enterprise cloud strategies are rapidly evolving.
As governance, security, data sovereignty, and industry-specific requirements become just as critical as scale, global organizations across industries are moving beyond a single-cloud approach and building multi-cloud portfolios that offer greater choice and control. In this environment, Private Cloud+ adds a powerful new option—combining the economics and agility of hyperscale with the control of private cloud, while providing a unified platform to connect data centers, integrate with public clouds, and prepare for AI workloads.
“Customers across industries from manufacturing to transportation, insurance and more want hyperscale economics, flexibility, and AI-readiness in a true hybrid environment, one that works across what they already run and the public clouds they depend on. Until now, they’ve had to compromise. Private Cloud+, powered by Dell and operated by DXC OASIS, ends that trade-off and enables them to be ready as AI workloads increase,” said Chris Drumgoole, President, Global Infrastructure Services, DXC.
Hosted in DXC’s data centers and orchestrated by DXC OASIS with a Human+ approach, Private Cloud+ supports the full range of enterprise workloads, including VMs, containers, data, backup and resiliency, and private AI. The result is a single environment where customers can reduce technical debt, strengthen security, and move faster from idea to production, supported by consumption-based economics that simplify financial planning.
Private Cloud+ is offered in three editions, enabling enterprises to choose the deployment model that matches their workload, tenancy, and compliance needs:
- Core: a multi-tenant private cloud with the full Private Cloud+ feature set on consumption-based pricing
- Dedicated: a single-tenant environment for customers requiring full isolation of compute, storage, and data sovereignty
- Government: a hardened edition with advanced security controls, operated by cleared domestic personnel, for government agencies and regulated industries
“Enterprises are juggling sensitive workloads, modernization, and AI, all at once. Many are looking for infrastructure that handles it natively, without bolt-ons. That’s exactly what we built with Private Cloud+, with DXC OASIS removing the operational burden so customers can focus on innovation,” said Benjamin Greene, Director, Global Infrastructure Services, Private Cloud, DXC.
DXC and Dell have collaborated for over 25 years, jointly serving more than 2,000 customers worldwide. DXC is a Titanium Black partner in the Dell Technologies Partner Program. Private Cloud+ is a DXC Fast Track solution, focused on AI-fueled capabilities and automation that drive exponential growth.
Tech News
DELINEA LAUNCHES NEW PARTNER PROGRAM TO DRIVE PARTNER PROFITABILITY AND SCALE GROWTH
Delinea, the runtime identity security platform that governs what humans, machines, and AI agents do once they have access, has announced the launch of the Delinea Partner Advantage Program. The new comprehensive framework is built to deliver proven identity security technology, protected discounts, and ease of doing business.
Developed with direct partner input, including a global partner listening survey, the Delinea Partner Advantage Program is designed to address the most persistent pain points in the channel: margin erosion, channel conflict, and ambiguous rules of engagement. The program gives partners a clear, structured path to deliver identity security outcomes to their customers and provides a foundation for predictable, profitable growth. Beyond protecting discounts, the program is structured to help partners compound the value of every customer relationship they build.
“Partners don’t care about your partner program,” said Scott Goree, senior vice president of channel and alliances at Delinea. “They care about technology that works, protected discounts, and a vendor that’s easy to work with. We built this program around what partners told us they actually need.”
The Delinea Partner Advantage Program has three core tenets – Protect, Align, and Scale – and introduces a modern structure to support how partners work today. Key features of the program include:
- Codified Rules of Engagement: Clear, published deal registration, teaming protections, and Earned Incumbency discounts to ensure partners who invest in building and expanding customer relationships are protected on renewals and rewarded for their ongoing contribution.
- AI-Driven Enablement: AI-powered just-in-time training and certifications that deliver the right content at the right moment in the sales cycle alongside an AI-powered partner portal.
- Channel Autonomy: Streamlined processes, tools, and automation designed to remove friction from the full quote-to-cash journey, enabling partners to spend less time navigating vendor complexity and more time selling.
The program launches as AI reshapes what customers need from identity security. According to the Delinea 2026 Identity Security Report, 92% of organizations expect AI to amplify identity-related threats in the coming years, and 42% say AI expansion has already increased their non-human identity risk in the past 12 months. That demand is the growth opportunity the Partner Advantage Program is built to capture, giving partners a new revenue stream backed by a platform designed to govern access for every human, machine, and AI identity.
“The Delinea Partner Advantage Program reflects a strong commitment to building successful, long-term partnerships,” said Mark Thornberry, SVP Partnerships, GuidePoint Security. “The program provides a clear framework that supports how we work together in the market, while recognizing the value partners bring through the customer relationships we cultivate and support.”
To support partners at every stage of their relationship with Delinea, the program offers three tiers: Elite for leading at scale, Premier for growing practice depth, and Select for building expertise. Each tier is structured to reflect the depth of engagement and unlock the right level of access, investment, and support.
Enrollment in the Delinea Partner Advantage Program is open to selling partners across all tiers now, with roles for MSPs, GSIs, advisory, and technology partners coming soon.
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