Yousuf Hamad Al Shaibani: Dubai’s Cybersecurity Chief and Space-Sector Leader
Editorial
Yousuf Hamad Al Shaibani leads the Dubai Electronic Security Center (DESC), Dubai’s government cybersecurity body, and is a founding member of both DESC and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), according to his UAE Space Agency board profile.
Roles
- Dubai Electronic Security Center. He was appointed Chief Executive Officer of DESC under resolutions issued by Hamdan bin Mohammed in June 2023, as reported by the Dubai Media Office. Earlier conference biographies list him as DESC’s Director General.
- Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre. Earlier coverage describes him as MBRSC’s Director General. A decision on the centre’s board names him Vice Chairman. We did not find a source stating whether he holds an executive post there today.
- Boards. He sits on the boards of the UAE Cyber Security Council and the UAE Space Agency.
His official profile says he played a key role in launching the Emirates Mars Mission and in sending the first Emirati astronaut to space.
Education
He graduated from Etisalat University College (now part of Khalifa University) in Sharjah in 1995, and earned a master’s degree in microelectronics systems design from Central England University (now Birmingham City University) in the UK in 1997, according to the HITBSecConf2018 speaker biography and the UAE Space Agency profile.
Experience
Profiles describe a long career in the UAE government sector. Different biographies give different lengths of service (over 18 years in a 2018 conference biography, over 25 years in the Space Agency profile), so we do not state a single figure.