PMI MENA ATP Leadership Roundtable in Dubai broughttogether training, corporate, government, academic and community partners to advance project capabilities across the region.
Dubai, UAE – 14 September 2026: Project Management Institute (PMI), the world’s leading authority in project management, brought together its regional Authorized Training Partner (ATP) community in Dubai for the PMI MENA ATP Leadership Roundtable, reinforcing the role of professional learning and collaboration in developing the project talent needed to support the Middle East and North Africa’s rapidly evolving economies.
Held at Dubai World Trade Centre on 10 September 2026, the gathering brought together PMI leaders, Authorized Training Partners from the corporate, government and academic sectors, and representatives from the PMI UAE Chapter, for discussions focused on workforce development, certification demand, future talent, and the evolving needs of organizations across the region.
The event comes as demand for project professionals continues to accelerate. PMI estimates that globally, up to 30 million additional project professionals will be needed by 2035. In MENA, the project professional workforce is expected to grow from approximately 1.3 million today to as many as 1.8 million by 2035, representing a potential requirement for up to 600,000 additional professionals to support the region’s ambitious development agenda.
PMI currently works with close to 200 Authorized Training Partners across 17 markets in MENA, forming an important part of a broader regional ecosystem that also includes corporations, universities, governments, PMI Chapters and the professional community. The ATP network gives professionals access to PMI’s global standard certifications enabling organizations to build project capabilities at scale.
Hanny Alshazly, Managing Director for the Middle East and North Africa at PMI, said: “Across MENA, transformation is happening at extraordinary speed and scale. Infrastructure, digitalization, AI, sustainability and economic diversification are creating tremendous opportunities, but delivering on these ambitions depends on having the right people and skills. Our Authorized Training Partners play an important role in building that capability. By working together, we can expand access to high-quality professional development, strengthen workforce capabilities and develop the project talent our region needs for the future.”
The roundtable explored how PMI and its partners can work more closely to respond to changing market requirements. Sessions addressed enterprise upskilling and workforce transformation, opportunities for ATP growth, and new ways to reach professionals and organizations across MENA. Building on the roundtable’s additional focus on strengthening collaboration between ATPs and PMI Chapters, the event also marked the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the PMI UAE Chapter and PMI ATP PM Tricks, further reinforcing their shared commitment to advancing the project management profession and supporting its continued development across the region.
Participants also took part in an interactive workshop and leadership discussions designed to identify market barriers, partner needs and opportunities for further collaboration.
The discussions also highlighted the continued expansion of PMI’s professional development portfolio. PMI’s ATP offering now extends across more than nine product lines, including the Project Management Professional (PMP)®, Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)®, PMI Construction Professional (PMI-CP)™, PMI Certified Professional in Managing AI (PMI-CPMAI)™, and sustainability-focused learning, enabling partners to address increasingly diverse workforce and industry needs.
A key development discussed during the event was the upcoming evolution of PMP® instructor-led training. From December 2026, live instructor-led training used toward PMP eligibility will be delivered through PMI’s Authorized Training Partner network, as PMI strengthens quality and consistency in PMP preparation worldwide. The event also highlighted PMI’s continued investment in localized learning, with leading certification courses such as PMP® and CAPM® available in Arabic alongside other globally supported languages.
The roundtable concluded with the 2026 PMI MENA ATP Partner Recognition Awards, celebrating organizations demonstrating leadership, innovation and measurable contribution to professional and workforce development across the region.
The 2026 recipients were:
- PM Tricks – PMI MENA ATP Partner of the Year 2026, recognized as PMI’s top-performing Authorized Training Partner in MENA, reflecting its strong FY2025 and 2026 performance, learner reach and continued contribution to professional certification across the region.
- PwC Academy – Excellence in Workforce Development, recognized for its leadership in using PMI certifications and learning to develop workforce capabilities and support professional development at scale.
- Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) – Excellence in Future Talent Development, recognized for its outstanding contribution and commitment to preparing the next generation of project professionals, including achieving the highest learner enrollment across PMI’s academic ATP portfolio.
- Engineering Tracks – ATP Impact Award, recognized for its exceptional thought leadership, sustained performance and community engagement, and its longstanding contribution to PMI and to advancing the project profession.
Alshazly added: “These recognitions are about more than performance as training providers. They reflect the impact our partners are having across the region, developing professionals, strengthening organizations, preparing for future talent and expanding the reach of the project profession. It is a great example of what we can achieve when PMI’s global standards come together with strong local expertise and market knowledge.”
The ATP Leadership Roundtable forms part of PMI MENA’s broader efforts to create a more connected regional project management ecosystem, bringing together learning partners, professional communities, employers, governments and academic institutions to strengthen capabilities and support sustainable economic and organizational transformation.
