Who’s Who: Mona Alsemayen, country head for Saudi Arabia at Amazon Payment Services

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Updated 13 October 2022
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Who’s Who: Mona Alsemayen, country head for Saudi Arabia at Amazon Payment Services

Mona Alsemayen is the country head, strategy and growth for Saudi Arabia at Amazon Payment Services, an industry leader in digital payments that empowers online businesses with simple, affordable and trusted payment solutions.

Alsemayen is an experienced professional in business transformation and payment systems with extensive knowledge of the Saudi Arabian digital payments sector.

As part of her role, she is leading the Amazon Payment Services team through a period of expansion in the Kingdom and enabling the digitalization of businesses across all sectors of the economy.

Alsemayen began her career as a payments policy specialist at Saudi Central Bank. She was responsible for critical initiatives arising from G-20 commitments and market developments related to payment systems and services. 

She joined Gulf Payments Co. in 2018, created by a Gulf Cooperation Committee Supreme Council resolution to build and develop a system to connect all payment systems in the GCC through an independent organization jointly funded by their central banks.

As the company’s business director, Alsemayen led the business development, business operations and marketing departments and contributed to creating the regional cross border payment service AFAQ.

A graduate of Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University in Riyadh, she has received numerous academic certificates, including “Strategy and Innovation” from the MIT Sloan School of Management; “Essential Management Skills for Emerging Leaders” from Harvard; “Blue Ocean Strategy” from INSEAD Business School; and “Artificial Intelligence in Finance and Open Banking” from the Saïd Business School of Oxford.


Families in Taif embrace Ramadan customs early

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Families in Taif embrace Ramadan customs early

TAIF: Residents of Taif are engaging in early preparations for the holy month of Ramadan, upholding deeply rooted customs that blend religious devotion with social tradition.

Families are meticulously organizing their homes and stocking up on supplies in anticipation of the communal meals and gatherings that define the month’s spirit of kinship, the Saudi Press Agency reports.

The city’s neighborhoods have taken on a festive character, adorned with traditional lanterns, crescent-shaped lights and star-shaped illuminations.

Historian Dhaifallah Al-Radwani said that these preparations — primarily led by women and children — include the use of traditional fabrics, incense burners and henna.

These rituals serve as a vital link to Saudi cultural heritage, ensuring that authentic community values and aesthetic traditions are passed down to new generations.

On Sunday, the last quarter moon of Shaban was visible across the Kingdom. Half of the moon was illuminated, while the other half remained in shadow, completing roughly three-quarters of its orbit around the Earth.

The last quarter moon draws the attention of amateur astronomers and astrophotographers, offering an ideal angle to observe surface features such as craters, volcanic plains and mountains, with shadows along the terminator enhancing their detail.

Jeddah Astronomy Society Director Majed Abu Zahra said that the last quarter moon marks a key transitional phase. Its visible light gradually decreases, becoming a waning crescent before sunrise, until the new moon on Feb. 17 signals the upcoming sighting of Ramadan’s crescent.