Dr. Ilham Kadri, CEO of Syensqo, has been re-elected as President of Cefic for a two-year term, effective immediately. She will continue to lead Cefic’s mission to promote a sustainable and competitive chemical industry in Europe and beyond. Starting January 2025, Dr. Kadri will also serve as President of the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA), during Cefic’s two-year mandate.
“The world is watching Europe, and the chemical industry, ‘the mother of all industries’, is the foundation of a sustainable and competitive future. My commitment remains firm: to support our sector’s transition while ensuring Europe remains a competitive hub for innovation, investment, and opportunity.” said Dr. Ilham Kadri.
Her leadership has been key to Cefic’s strategic initiatives, including the Antwerp Declaration, which aims to prioritize European competitiveness amid complex global challenges, Cefic says in their press release. Cefic, the European Chemical Industry Council, founded in 1972, is the forum of large, medium, and small chemical companies across Europe, which account for 14% of world chemicals production.
Ilham Kadri, born in 1969 in Casablanca, Morocco, studied chemical engineering at L’École des Hauts Polymères in Strasbourg, France, and received her Ph.D. in macromolecular physico-chemistry from Strasbourg’s Louis Pasteur University. During her 30-year career, she has held various positions at leading companies, with responsibilities in research and development, strategy, business, and digital across industries such as automotive, aerospace, oil and gas, mining, water desalination, construction, consumer goods, food service, hospitality, and healthcare.
In 2019, Ilham Kadri became CEO of Solvay. She played a key role in the restructuring and separation of the company into the traditional Solvay and a new materials unit, Syensqo. In the Syensqo spin-off, Kadri is Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chair of the Executive Leadership Team, and a member of the Syensqo Board of Directors.
- Cefic (European Chemical Industry Council), Brussels, Belgium
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