{{short description|Kuwaiti scientist and activist}} {{infobox person/Wikidata | fetchwikidata=ALL}} '''Sara Hussein Akbar''' ({{langx|ar|سارة أكبر}}) is a Kuwaiti chemical petroleum engineer, women's rights advocate, and co-founder and former chief executive officer of Kuwait Energy.<ref name="Ali 2016">{{Cite journal|last=Ali|first=Souad T.|date=2016-09-08|title=Sara Akbar: Kuwait's Hero and Female Leader in the Oil Industry|journal=Hawwa|language=en|volume=14|issue=2|pages=207–225|doi=10.1163/15692086-12341298|issn=1569-2086}}</ref><ref name="Ambrose 2018">{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2018/01/08/kuwait-energy-eyes-london-listing-soco-merger-talks/|title=Kuwait Energy eyes London listing with Soco merger talks|last=Ambrose|first=Jillian|date=2018|work=The Telegraph|access-date=2018-03-07|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}}</ref> Akbar is recognized as a "national hero" due to her involvement in the Kuwaiti oil fires which were later depicted in the Academy Award nominated documentary ''Fires of Kuwait''.<ref name="Ali 2016" /> For her firefighting efforts, she was awarded the Global 500 Roll of Honour from the United Nations Environmental Program.<ref name="WhartonProfile">{{Cite news|url=http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/sara-akbar-makes-a-name-for-herself-in-the-oil-industry/|title=Sara Akbar Makes a Name for Herself in the Oil Industry - Knowledge@Wharton|work=Knowledge@Wharton|access-date=2017-12-08|language=en-US}}</ref> Akbar is one of the first women oil sector company executives from the Arabian Peninsula.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.alayam.com/Article/courts-article/398433/%C2%AB%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%AF%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A9%C2%BB.html|title=Iron Lady of Kuwait|last=Al Madani|first=Abdullah|date=2015-03-20|access-date=2018-02-05|language=ar-AR}}</ref><ref name="Ali 2016" /> She served as the director of the Society of Petroleum Engineers in 2007.

== Early life and education == Akbar grew up in a large Kuwaiti family consisting of her mother and father, as well as nine brothers and sisters, and her father was an oil driller.<ref name="WhartonProfile" /> She earned her bachelor's degree as part of Kuwait University's first graduating class of Chemical Engineers in 1981.<ref name="Ali 2016" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thebusinessyear.com/kuwait-2016/we-have-a-plan/interview|title=We Have a Plan|website=The Business Year|access-date=2018-02-05|archive-date=2018-03-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311021503/https://www.thebusinessyear.com/kuwait-2016/we-have-a-plan/interview|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://hayatouki.com/portraits/content/1872968-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A3%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B1-%D8%A3%D9%88%D9%84-%D9%85%D9%87%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%B3%D8%A9-%D9%83%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%84-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%AD%D9%82%D9%88%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%88%D9%84|title=Sara Akbar: The first Kuwaiti engineer working in oil fields|last=Omran|first=Mohammed|date=2014-04-07|work=Hayatouki|access-date=2018-02-05|language=ar|archive-date=2016-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305041345/http://hayatouki.com/portraits/content/1872968-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A3%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B1-%D8%A3%D9%88%D9%84-%D9%85%D9%87%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%B3%D8%A9-%D9%83%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%84-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%AD%D9%82%D9%88%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%88%D9%84|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Career == Akbar began her career working in departmental offices before attaining a position as a petroleum engineer for Kuwait Oil Company.<ref name="Ali 2016" /> She subsequently worked there in fire-fighting operations, as superintendent of petroleum engineering, and as R&D specialist.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.aimehq.org/programs/award/bio/sara-akbar|title=Sara Akbar {{!}} AIME|website=www.aimehq.org|access-date=2020-01-09}}</ref> Between 1981 and 1999, Akbar worked in the oil sector at Kuwait Energy, a company she co-founded and served as CEO. She is the first woman to hold a leading position in the Middle East oil and gas industry.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=http://www.ons.no/iron-lady-of-the-middle-east-sara-akbar-to-speak-at-ons/|title=Iron lady of the Middle East, Sara Akbar, to speak at ONS - ONS 2018|website=www.ons.no|language=en-US|access-date=2017-12-08|archive-date=2018-10-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181025124940/http://www.ons.no/iron-lady-of-the-middle-east-sara-akbar-to-speak-at-ons|url-status=dead}}</ref> During the 1990 invasion of Kuwait by Iraq, most of the oil wells in the country (80%) were attacked by Saddam Hussein's army. Akbar was the lone woman on a rogue team of petroleum engineers who acted against orders to take on the dangerous task of dousing oil well fires.<ref name="Ali 2016" /> She believes it was her familiarity with the wells that allowed her team to be successful: "I worked on the oilfields, offshore and onshore, day and night, and the result of this work was that I knew the oilfields very well... There were 800 wells and I knew every single one like the back of my hand."<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/kuwait-energy-chief-sara-akbar-recalls-baptism-of-fire-1.568576|title=Kuwait Energy chief Sara Akbar recalls baptism of fire|work=The National|access-date=2017-12-08|language=en}}</ref> Their efforts were later shown in ''Fires of Kuwait'', a 1992 documentary that was nominated for Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature''.''<ref name="Ali 2016" />

From 2001 to 2005, she was the business development manager of Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company.<ref name=":0" />

In 2006, Akbar was behind the creation of oil and gas legislation and regulations in Somalia. She also was a "catalyst" humanitarian efforts in the country. Under Akbar's direction, Kuwait Energy sponsored approximately "two hundred women to start up small business markets..."<ref name="Ali 2016" />

Akbar served as the director-at-large of the Society of Petroleum Engineers in 2007.<ref name="Ali 2016" />

In January 2018, Akbar became the only woman on the Board of Trustees of the Silk City and Boubyan Island development authority for the project Madinat al-Hareer.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2685236&language=en|title=Kuwait cabinet holds weekly meeting|date=2018-01-22|website=Kuwait News Agency|access-date=2018-03-07}}</ref> She resigned as the CEO of Kuwait Energy in 2017.<ref name="Ambrose 2018" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/markets/article/soco-turns-lights-out-on-kuwait-energy-merger-vtnldfrp3|title=Soco turns lights out on Kuwait Energy merger|last=Gosden|first=Emily|date=2018-03-06|work=The Times|access-date=2018-03-07|language=en|issn=0140-0460|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

== Accolades == Akbar's awards include:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.aimehq.org/programs/award/bio/sara-akbar|title=Sara Akbar {{!}} AIME|website=www.aimehq.org|access-date=2017-12-08}}</ref><ref name="auto"/> * Global 500 Roll of Honour &ndash; United Nations Environment Programme, 1993<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.alanba.com.kw/ar/kuwait-news/75317/06-11-2009-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%B1-%D9%84%D9%80-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D9%8A%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%AC%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%84%D8%A9-%D9%82%D8%B6%D9%8A%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%A7%D8%B7%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D9%81%D8%B7-%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%88%D8%AF-%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B6-%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%BA%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%B0%D9%83%D8%B1%D9%89-%D8%A8%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%AC%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A7%D9%86|title=Sarah's greatest news for beautiful days|last=Abucedo|first=Zainab|date=2009-11-06|work=Alanba|access-date=2018-02-05|language=ar}}</ref> * Distinguished Member &ndash; Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2003<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spe.org/awards/distinguished.php|title=Distinguished Membership - Society of Petroleum Engineers|author=|date=|website=www.spe.org|accessdate=30 January 2018}}</ref> * Charles F. Rand Memorial Gold Medal &ndash; American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, 2013<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aimehq.org/programs/award/bio/sara-akbar|title=Sara Akbar - AIME|author=|date=|website=www.aimehq.org|accessdate=30 January 2018}}</ref><ref name="Ali 2016" /> * Leader in Energy &ndash; Women in Leadership Awards and Forum, 2009{{importance inline|date=March 2021}} * WOW Award (Entrepreneurship Award) &ndash; New Arab Woman Forum, 2017{{importance inline|date=March 2021}} * Ranked 46 out of "The Top 100 Most Powerful Arab Businesswomen" by Forbes<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.forbesmiddleeast.com/en/list/top-100-powerful-arab-businesswomen-2017/item/46/|title=100 Most Powerful Arab Businesswomen 2017 - Forbes Middle East|work=Forbes Middle East|access-date=2018-02-05|others=Researched by Ahmed Mabrouk, Ranju Warrier, Jason Lasrado|language=en-US|archive-date=2017-10-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171001213752/https://www.forbesmiddleeast.com/en/list/top-100-powerful-arab-businesswomen-2017/item/46/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Women's rights == In interviews, Akbar speaks about the role of women in the workplace, especially in Middle Eastern countries. She notes that there is variation between the countries and should not be viewed as equivalent in their advancements of women's rights. Speaking about Kuwait and the women's rights movement, she argues, "Kuwait is top of the class in women’s rights, access to education, business and work. [At the same time], the country remains way behind in terms of political rights, which we finally got four or five years ago. I strongly believe in the 'power of women,' i.e., their ability to fight for what they are entitled to and to finally win the battle. In Kuwait, this movement is quite strong."<ref name="WhartonProfile"/> Akbar does not believe Islam imposes "social limits" on women, instead, she believes there are larger socio-cultural factors that impact women's rights.<ref name="Ali 2016" />

== Personal life == Akbar credits parental support as a key factor in her success, as well as the success of her siblings. She is currently married and living in Kuwait City with her husband and three children.<ref name="WhartonProfile"/> Akbar is Shia Muslim. Sara Akbar currently resides in Rumathiya <ref name="Ali 2016"/>

== References == {{reflist|30em}}

== External links == * {{YouTube|id=6QTsVnjMxEc|title=Kuwait Energy's CEO, Sara Akbar talks to Oil & Money}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Akbar, Sara}} Category:1958 births Category:20th-century businesswomen Category:20th-century women engineers Category:21st-century businesswomen Category:21st-century women engineers Category:Founders of the petroleum industry Category:Kuwait University alumni Category:Kuwaiti women's rights activists Category:Kuwaiti people of Iranian descent Category:Living people Category:Muslim activists Category:People from Kuwait City Category:Petroleum engineers Category:Women chief executives Category:Kuwaiti women company founders Category:Kuwaiti company founders Category:Women chemical engineers Category:Kuwaiti women engineers