Raya Yusuf-Sbitany is an organizational behavior & gender inclusion expert working as consultant guiding corporates and private sector companies in their gender inclusion and women's empowerment strategies, projects, and initiatives.
Raya is also an entrepreneur who currently serves as the CEO of Derma Beauty Lab, a boutique skincare manufacturing company based in Jerusalem, dedicated to producing premium skincare products, and exporting to several countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East,
and Europe. Raya is known for her commitment to ethical production under the highest quality standards in manufacturing and transparent marketing. Her professional philosophy revolves around fostering employment opportunities, particularly for women and youth in Jerusalem, where female employment in her company has reached 75%.
Prior to this, Raya was the Chief Business Development & Financial Inclusion Officer at Bank of Palestine. During her career at the bank, she founded several departments at the bank including Business Development, Financial Inclusion, Investor Relations, and Quality Assurance, in addition to designing and implementing the bank’s Women’s Market program “Felestineya”, a comprehensive program to support women by offering banking products and services that meet their needs, a full program of advisory services and training, as well as implementing internal changes to promote gender equality. In 2015, Raya received the award of Best Investor Relations Professional in Palestine by the Middle East Investor Relations Society.
Raya holds a Master’s degree from King’s College London in International Management, and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia in Middle Eastern Studies and Economics.
Raya is a member of the national Financial Inclusion Committee of the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA), a board member at Vitas Palestine Microfinance Institution, and Yabous Cultural Center in Jerusalem.