15-05-2025
Dubai Municipality and Dubai Government Human Resources Department organise the "PMO Government Symposium"
Abdullah bin Zayed Al Falasi: "The symposium is a pioneering model of government integration and a key supporter of empowering human resources and building human-centered project management offices."
Americo Pinto: "We are proud to support the symposium and appreciate Dubai Municipality's voluntary contributions to developing the project management office profession."
Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Dubai Municipality and the Dubai Government Human Resources Department organised the "PMO Government Symposium" in cooperation with the knowledge partner, the PMO Global Alliance (PMOGA), affiliated with the Project Management Institute (PMI), represented by its regional MENA hub. The symposium was held in celebration of the International Project Management Offices Day.
The symposium brought together a group of project management office leaders to network and discuss key concepts related to empowering human resources, decision-making, and strategies for building human-centered PMOs. The symposium's importance is highlighted as an exceptional event that reinforces the UAE's leadership in institutional excellence, innovation, and effective governance within project management offices. It also highlights the role of the global community of project management offices in encouraging knowledge exchange and enhancing practices toward a more harmonious and impactful project environment. The symposium leverages global experiences and success stories to enhance the efficiency of monitoring the implementation of national projects.
His Excellency Eng. Marwan Ahmed bin Ghalita, Director General of Dubai Municipality, emphasised that the Emirate of Dubai and the UAE have established themselves as a global hub of excellence in project management offices (PMOs). This is based on the approach and vision of the wise leadership, which focuses on long-term planning and foresight to achieve leadership and excellence in projects that serve the country's comprehensive and prosperous development.
His Excellency said:"The PMO Government Symposium is the result of cooperation between Dubai Municipality, the Dubai Government Human Resources Department, and the knowledge partner, the Project Management Offices Global Alliance MENA Hub. Today, we have the opportunity to discuss the most prominent global trends in the field of project management offices, develop bridges of communication between the public and private sectors with the participation of international organisations, and consider the future of this field. This will enhance cooperation and exchange of global best practices, inspire transformation in project leadership, achieve added institutional value, and consolidate the emirate's distinguished position in managing and monitoring the implementation of pioneering projects."
H.E. Abdullah Ali Bin Zayed Al-Falasi, Director General of Dubai Government Human Resources Department, said: 'The symposium represents a forward-thinking example of cross-government collaboration in Dubai, and confirms our commitment at the Dubai Government Human Resources Department to supporting and empowering national cadres, equipping them with the skills and knowledge necessary to lead project management offices efficiently and professionally. The focus on building human-centric offices reflects the Dubai Government's vision of investing in human capital as a fundamental pillar for achieving institutional excellence and ensuring the sustainability of government projects. We also believe that our collaboration with Dubai Municipality to bring together leading minds and diverse expertise in this symposium will contribute to enhancing integration between government entities and encourage the adoption of global best practices, thus consolidating Dubai's position as a capital of innovation and good governance.'
'As the global leader of the PMO community since 2017, PMO Global Alliance (PMOGA) – under the umbrella of Project Management Institute (PMI) and driven by a global network of experienced professionals and volunteers – has been driving excellence in project management offices worldwide,' said Americo Pinto, Managing Director of PMO Global Alliance (PMOGA) at PMI.
'The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region holds strategic importance for us, and Dubai Municipality's PMO exemplifies its potential as a globally award-winning office. We greatly value Dubai Municipality's continuous volunteer contributions to advancing the PMO profession and enriching PMOGA's best practice guidelines, which reflect the collaborative spirit at the heart of PMOGA. That is why PMOGA is proud to support and partner in the Government PMOs symposium as a knowledge partner—to celebrate and share such success stories. With dedicated leaders like Heba Al Shehhi volunteering as PMOGA's regional MENA Hub Lead, we are strengthening our commitment to the region and inspiring the next era of PMO excellence. This is an important opportunity for the MENA region to learn from the best global practices and build stronger, more resilient PMOs. The region now leads the world in the number of PMOGA certifications and is home to some of the most highly recognized project management offices globally.'
Insights and trends
The symposium hosted a select group of keynote speakers, including Lee Lambert, founder of the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification and a Fellow of the Project Management Institute (PMI), who addressed the importance of information in empowering project management offices (PMOs). In his keynote address, America Pinto covered the value of PMOs within an organisation and how they can focus on people to ensure success and sustainability.
The symposium sessions addressed the importance of focusing on people in building PMOs, during a session titled " The Heart of PMOs: Trust, Teams, and Talent—Building a Human-Centric PMO for the Future." The session titled "Government PMOs – Leading Transformation and Uplifting Value" also addressed the ability of government PMOs to transform from traditional offices into key enablers of organisational transformation and value creation.
Dubai Municipality has firmly established itself as a global leader in PMO excellence, having received numerous prestigious international recognitions, most notably: the Best PMO in the World Award twice: in 2021 by the PMO Global Alliance and in 2022 by the Project Management Institute (PMI) as the first organization in the Middle East and Asia to achieve this distinction.
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