One of the world’s largest air services providers, UAE-based Dubai National Air Transport Association (dnata) has become the first global air and travel services provider to join the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) 25by2025 initiative that aims to advance gender diversity in the aviation industry.
dnata, joining with 62 airlines, has pledged to boost the number of women in senior positions and under-represented roles with a target to reach a minimum representation of 25 percent or increase current levels by a minimum of 25 percent by 2025 across all divisions.
Under the initiative, the company will report annually on key diversity metrics. Further, dnata will be working jointly with IATA and other signatories to increase the representation and nomination of women to IATA governance roles.
Steve Allen EVP – dnata
“Diversity has always been a core value at the heart of our organization, with our people coming from more than 160 nationalities. Over recent years, we have taken several initiatives to empower women across our operations to progress their careers and help them achieve their full potential. We are thrilled to join IATA’s initiative to step up to the next level and play our part in improving gender diversity across the aviation industry.”
Mr. Anton Grove, Vice President of People Performance & Development of IATA, said, “I welcome dnata’s commitment to 25by2025. Joining the 25by2025 pledge signals the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion to all our aviation partners. By working together with a common goal we will drive real change. I look forward to seeing more ground handling companies joining this effort in the future.”
Across dnata’s global operations, women are employed in wide-ranging job roles covering all major operational, commercial and support functions. Women are represented in almost all seniority levels within the company, including executive, management as well as various technical roles.
These include specialized operational roles such as cargo loadmasters, ramp operations team leaders, turnaround coordinators and flight dispatchers. Over 24 percent of the women working with dnata have been with the company for 10 years or longer.
