People
Board of Directors
Raymond (Rafeek) Najar, OMIEA Australia -- National Chairman
Ray Najar was appointed as National Chairman of the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry in 2008.
Ray is a civil engineer who has specialized in water resource management since 1964. He completed his diploma with a Rotary Foundation Fellowship in the USA in 1976 and is a Melville Jones Fellow in Lions International. Since September 2003, Ray has been the General Manager of the Murray Darling Association, Australia’s largest local government body.
Since 1996 Ray has developed a consulting business in specialising in sales and marketing to the Middle East. He is an agricultural engineering expert whose work focuses on irrigation and water resource management. Ray has worked in Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Lebanon.
In 2005, Ray was awarded South Australian Ambassador of the Year for his efforts in promoting bilateral trade between Australia and the Middle East, and facilitating trade missions in and out of Australia. He remains an active South Australian Business Ambassador.
Peter Deacon -- Director
Peter Deacon -- Director
Peter Deacon is a Director of AACCI and has over 30 years of experience in international trade promotion. In 1997 Peter established Australia’s first State Office in the Middle East, the Victorian Government Business Office (VGBO) in Dubai, UAE and remained its Executive Director until 2008.
Prior to his role as Victoria’s most senior representative in the Middle East, Peter had a long history with Austrade including Trade Commissioner Abu Dhabi 1983-87 and Australian Consul General and Senior Trade Commissioner in Dubai, UAE from 1994 until 1997. In 1994 he founded the forerunner to the Australian Business Council Dubai.
In September 2008, Peter returned to Australia and established his own consultancy company to assist Australian companies enter or progress in Middle East markets. He continues to play a pivotal role in the development of many organisations.
Michael Farrar -- Director & Queensland State Chair
Michael Farrar served AACCI through the nineties and became part of the Queensland Chapter in 2004. He is currently the Chair of the Queensland Chapter and an AACCI Director.
Michael was educated at Sydney Grammar School and spent 11 years with GJ Coles as a management trainee, before joining Craig Mostyn Limited as an export trader for a further nine years. Michael then worked for several years as an export manager for UKI Meat Industries, operators of Dubbo and Wodonga Abattoirs.
Michael established his firm M L Farrar Pty Limited in 1981. The company went on to become AustraHort Pty Limited and now trades seed and agricultural commodities in more than 50 countries.
Michael is extensively involved in the Middle East. He first traveled there in 1975 and most years thereafter culminating in a seven month term resident in Abu Dhabi in 2006. He has an ongoing interest in seeds and commodities.
James Harb -- Director & New South Wales State Chair
Peter Deacon is a Director of AACCI and has over 30 years of experience in international trade promotion. In 1997 Peter established Australia’s first State Office in the Middle East, the Victorian Government Business Office (VGBO) in Dubai, UAE and remained its Executive Director until 2008.
Peter Deacon is a Director of AACCI and has over 30 years of experience in international trade promotion. In 1997 Peter established Australia’s first State Office in the Middle East, the Victorian Government Business Office (VGBO) in Dubai, UAE and remained its Executive Director until 2008.
Michael Farrar -- Director & Queensland State Chair
Michael Farrar -- Director & Queensland State Chair
Michael Farrar served AACCI through the nineties and became part of the Queensland Chapter in 2004. He is currently the Chair of the Queensland Chapter and an AACCI Director.
Michael was educated at Sydney Grammar School and spent 11 years with GJ Coles as a management trainee, before joining Craig Mostyn Limited as an export trader for a further nine years. Michael then worked for several years as an export manager for UKI Meat Industries, operators of Dubbo and Wodonga Abattoirs.
Michael established his firm M L Farrar Pty Limited in 1981. The company went on to become AustraHort Pty Limited and now trades seed and agricultural commodities in more than 50 countries.
Michael is extensively involved in the Middle East. He first traveled there in 1975 and most years thereafter culminating in a seven month term resident in Abu Dhabi in 2006. He has an ongoing interest in seeds and commodities.
James Harb is a member of AACCI’s Board of Directors. He earned an LLB (Hons) from the University of Technology, Sydney in 1991 and an LLM from the University of Sydney in 1995.
James is currently a partner at Blackstone Waterhouse Lawyers and leads the International Trade & Transport group. He is regarded as one of Australia’s preeminent lawyers in the field and is also an expert in maritime law, logistics litigation, road/rail transport and aviation law.
James has significant experience in establishing Australian business in Arab countries, particularly Iraq and the United Arab Emirates. He is also proficient with the Arabic language and culture.
Geoff Puttick -- Western Australia State Chair
Geoff is the State Chair for the Western Australia Chapter of the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce and Industry (AACCI).
Geoff is also the Chief Executive Officer and Regional Chairman for Pre-Paid Legal Services for the Asian, Middle Eastern and African regions. He is responsible for overseeing the company's development and expansion of its legal service provider network. Geoff is also involved in its ongoing growth within these regions by establishing stronger joint business relationships with other companies.
Geoff has an extensive background as a business developer over the past 30 years and has been working in management, consulting and advisory roles to both listed and unlisted companies and government. These are primarily in the areas of business investment and development, business analysis, mergers and acquisitions, mediation and negotiation.
He has worked extensively across South East Asia, Mainland China and the United States, for various Australian, Asian and US based companies, and developed an extensive and valuable client network throughout these regions. Geoff has worked with and consulted for some of the most influential companies in Asia, Mainland China and the US. He has developed many high profile business, government and political associations, as a result of his success in bringing together Asian and Western businesses.
Geoff is also involved in the ongoing development and trialing of new light-based security technology systems to the US military, law enforcement and security agencies, and oversees the marketing of this technology and its trials by the Australian military and law enforcement agencies.
Management
Cynthia Dearin -- Chief Executive Officer
Cynthia Dearin was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce and Industry in June 2010.
Ms Dearin is an Australian-qualified legal practitioner with extensive experience in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region. From 2006 until 2010, she worked as a governance advisor to the Government of Iraq on behalf of international donor agencies including the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the European Union (EU), the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Department of Defense. Her work in Baghdad and Erbil focused on promoting reforms to investment and procurement laws, and supporting investment promotion in Iraq. She also assisted federal agencies in negotiating and concluding international commercial contracts and resolving commercial disputes.
From February 2001 to June 2005 Cynthia was a political officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade. During this time, she held diplomatic posts in Egypt, the UAE and Qatar, where trade and investment promotion was an important part of her role.
Cynthia holds a Bachelor of Laws (First Class Honours)/International Studies and a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice from the University of Technology, Sydney and a Master of Science (Middle East Politics)(First Class Honours) from the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. She is proficient in written and spoken Arabic and French, and uses her language skills in a professional capacity.
John Fernando -- Director of Communications, Marketing and Events
John has a diverse background, which includes: award-winning writer/journalist; successful communications manager and major business developer for Archicentre (building advisory of the Australian Institute of Architects) in Melbourne; was a former managing editor of sailing magazine Club Marine; founding editorial member (one of three) of the Financial Standard; editor-in-chief of the former Northwest Weekender in Melbourne, and a seasoned journalist with experience in the United States (Pennsylvania), the UAE (news reporter and columnist with the Gulf News and the Khaleej Times) and in Australia (writes to numerous newspapers and magazines on a range of topics).
John has also worked as a senior communications consultant or financial writer for AXA Asia Pacific's head office in Melbourne, Mercer Wealth Solutions and Colonial First State Corporate Superannuation Department. He also worked with the Qatari royal family in 1991. He also worked as a journalist with the State Parliamentary Headquarters of Victoria, and has done several exclusive interviews with Tony Abbott, Wayne Swan, Simon Crean, Helen Crean, Helen Coonan, Stephen Conroy, and one interview with the late President of Dubai, Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid al Maktoum.
John has a BA in Economics and Journalism from the US, and did a Graduate Diploma in Professional Writing and Editing at Deakin University in Melbourne. He has also written and published two books of short stories. He has lived 18 years in Dubai, and equal amounts of time between the US, Australia and Sri Lanka. His dad was the associate editor of Gulf News (18 years) and his mum was a celebrated columnist on child psychology.
John loves sport and has represented the national rugby union teams of Sri Lanka and Kenya, and the 'Emirate' team of Dubai. He has also performed in stage musicals as a principal and was also an assistant director of a major musical. He has witnessed several wars (Middle East and Sri Lanka) and one tsunami (Boxing Day 2004) in Sri Lanka.
John has a keen desire to work with the AACCI team to help it grow and generate significant commercial returns, in conjunction with a high level of publicity and exposure for the AACCI and its purview of operations and stakeholders. His personal ethos towards helping the AACCI and its stakeholders benefit to the maximum (from his skills and experience) is based on the wonderful and memorable experience he has in the Arabian Gulf for two decades.
Jemima Riley -- Executive Officer, New South Wales
Jemima Riley is AACCI’s most recent recruit, after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Politics from Macquarie University in June 2011. She joined AACCI as a Marketing, Communications and Events Intern directly after graduating, as her career aspirations lie in the field of international relations, and more specifically Australia’s relations with the Middle East region. She has a strong interest in politics and current affairs, and is proactive in learning about contemporary global issues. Jemima has travelled to the United Arab Emirates for a women's leadership conference, and wishes to further her knowledge of the region through professional experience.
Don Williamson -- Executive Officer, Queensland
Before joining the AACCI team, Don Williamson served in the Commonwealth government for over 30 years – most recently with the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade).
He has extensive experience in developing business strategy and marketing programming. He has also worked on numerous projects requiring managing communications across several sectors of industry.
Additionally, Don draws on his close familiarity with Commonwealth procedures and programming to provide significant insight into government relations.
Max White -- Executive Officer, Victoria
Max White joined the Victorian Chapter of the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce in Chamber in late 2002.
Prior to joining AACCI, Max was a long term employee of the Foster's Group. Commencing with Foster's in the early 60's he played key roles in expanding the brand internationally. During his time with Foster's, he served in a number of positions which covered all facets of the export mix—including logistics, sales and marketing. Max first worked in the Middle East in the 1980's, where he led the brand to become a major consumer product in the region.
Max and his family relocated to Dubai in 1996, where he opened the Regional Office for Foster's International. From this hub Max traveled extensively throughout the Middle East, Africa and the Central Asian Republics, working alongside existing Foster's distributor network as well as assessing market opportunities and evaluating potential distributor partnerships.
Chris Heysen -- Executive Officer, South Australia
Chris has spent all his working life in international trade and development. After nearly 14 years in Papua New Guinea during the 1960's and 70's, he was recruited by the South Australia government in 1978 to promote the export of dryland farming technology to the Middle East. This lead to the foundation in 1980 of SAGRIC International—where Chris held senior management positions for some 14 years. Involved in both marketing and project management, he worked throughout the Middle East and North Africa with long or short term assignments in countries across the region, including Jordan, Kenya, Algeria, Cyprus, Turkey, Libya, Iran and Kuwait.
After a brief spell as Senior Economist in the South Australian Department of Primary Industries, he returned to international work as a freelance consultant in 1997 until being recruited by Austrade to go to Cairo in 1998. During the 1990's he served five years as the President of the South Australian Chapter of the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry, and was the inaugural Chairman for a company that produced and marketed "freekeh", a traditional Middle Eastern food product made from unripened wheat.
From late 1998, Chris served for four years as Austrade's Senior Trade Commissioner in Cairo, with responsibility for Lebanon, Syria and, later, Libya, in addition to Egypt. He introduced many Australian companies to what were then relatively new markets for all except the rural industries. In 2002 he was recruited by the Government of Western Australia to open their new Regional Trade & Investment Office for the Middle East, located in Dubai. After fours year during which more than 160 WA companies were introduced to new markets in the region he returned to Australia in late 2006 and now consults to industry, mainly the rural sector, on trade and management issues. He is also the Executive Officer for the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Chris was born in Adelaide, South Australia. He is married with one son. In addition to English, he speaks neo-Melanesian, and has a basic knowledge of Arabia and French.
Nick Paterniti -- Executive Officer, Western Australia
Nick joins AACCI as the Western Australia Executive Officer following his role as the International Trade Development Officer at Chamber of Commerce and Industry Western Australia (CCIWA). This was Nick's first professional role after completing his Bachelor of Business with majors in Accounting and International Business at Edith Cowan University before moving along to complete his Master’s Degree in International Business at Curtin University. Nick has a strong interest in learning about developing trade between and all parts of the world, including the Arab nations.
