Soha El-Torgoman Recognised as First Egyptian Female General Manager

Dubai, U.A.E, November 8, 2007 - World Tourism Day, an annual event sanctioned by the U.N. World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), has spotlighted Soha El-Torgoman for her efforts and achievements as the 'First Egyptian Female General Manager'. El-Torgoman is General Manager of the Hilton Hurghada Resort.

Built around the theme of 'Tourism Opens Doors for Women, the celebration was held under the patronage of H.E Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, the First Lady of Egypt.

World Tourism Day provides an opportunity to look beyond borders and celebrates the unique opportunities offered by the travel and tourism industry. This year's event honoured successful women figures for their contribution and achievements in the industry.

Caroline Stevens, Vice President, Human Resources, Hilton Hotels, Middle East & Africa said: "Hilton is committed to the development and growth of women in the region, and strongly supports women's empowerment. We continuously endeavour to drive this mission across the entire region. We are proud of Soha's significant achievement. Our vision complements the U.A.E government's conviction that women's pivotal role in society can only be beneficial to all.

"From a broader perspective, recognising women's accomplishments on World Tourism Day allows us to maintain a supportive and collegial network for women in the industry to assist each other's professional growth."

Among Soha's many achievements are the openings of two Hilton resorts in Egypt as the Resident Manager. When she first joined Hilton Hurghada Resort, the resort was in need of extensive restoration. Soha led a complete renovation plan resulting in a re-classification of the resort from a four to a five star property. The resort received a Balanced Score Card award for the company's Egypt region in 2005. Under her leadership, the resort was also awarded the highest HHonors GSTS (Guest Satisfaction Tracking System) score in the Middle East & Asia Pacific area of over 80 hotels.

Soha El-Torgoman said, "My success is thanks to Hilton. I see Hilton as a school that enriches my experience and adds to my know-how, giving me the skills that are required across all facets of a demanding hotel industry. Being part of Hilton has qualified me to achieve this leadership position, and enabled me to fulfill my responsibilities successfully.

Hilton's strong belief that its team members are its strongest asset underpins all of its deliverables. The company spares no effort in providing support and assistance to its team members, and works hard to develop their abilities through valuable industry-specific training programmes."

The celebration was attended by H.E Zuhair Garahna, Minister of Tourism, in addition to more than 500 people from the public, private and tourism sectors.

-Ends- 

Note to Editors:
Hilton Hotels Corporation is the leading global hospitality company, with more than 2,800 hotels and 480,000 rooms in 76 countries and territories, including 100,000 team members worldwide. 

The company owns, manages or franchises a hotel portfolio of some of the best known and highly regarded hotel brands including Hilton®, Conrad® Hotels & Resorts, Doubletree®, Embassy Suites Hotels®, Hampton Inn®, Hampton Inn & Suites®, Hilton Garden Inn®, Hilton Grand Vacations™, Homewood Suites by Hilton®, and The Waldorf=Astoria Collection®.

The company currently operates 43 hotels in the Middle East and Africa - 18 hotels in Egypt, nine hotels in the UAE, four in Saudi Arabia and one each in Oman and Kuwait, plus another ten hotels in Africa and the Indian Ocean.

Hilton's heritage in the Middle East stretches back nearly 50 years, when it became the first international hotel brand to open a property in Egypt - the Nile Hilton in 1959. It was also the first international hotel brand to open a property in the UAE over 35 years ago - the Hilton Al Ain in 1971.

The 46-suite Qasr Al Sharq, or 'Palace of the Orient' which opened last year is now a member of The Waldorf=Astoria Collection®. The first phase of a Worldwide Resort in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE opened in January this year with 151 villa suites right on the beach.

Hilton Hotels has an opening pipeline of an additional 15 properties across Middle East & Africa in the U.A.E, Qatar, Kuwait, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Equatorial Guinea, Uganda and Ghana.

The Hilton Family of Hotels adheres to founder Conrad Hilton's philosophy that, "It has been, and continues to be, our responsibility to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality."  The company put a name to its unique brand of service that has made it the best known and most highly regarded hotel company:  be hospitable®.    The philosophy is shared by all brands in the Hilton Family of Hotels, and is the inspiration for its overarching message of kindness and generosity (www.behospitable.com)

For more information about our company, please visit www.hiltonworldwide.com. To download images please visit www.vismedia-online.com

The Hilton Reservations and Customer Care telephone numbers in the Middle East are as follows:

UAE                - 8000 20000 11            Qatar                - 800 97103
KSA               - 800 82000 10               Egypt               - 19009
Bahrain          - 8000 4058                   Jordan              - 00 202 5805927
Kuwait           - 00965 225 6200           Lebanon            - 00 202 5805928
Oman               - 800 788788                 Syria                - 00 202 5805926

For further information please contact:
Samantha Wood
Area Director of PR & Communications
Hilton Hotels, Middle East & Africa
Tel: +971 4 365 4886
Fax: +971 4 391 6791
Email:   Samantha.Wood@hilton.com

Majid Wasi
Senior Account Manager
JiWin
Tel: +971 4 361 3882
Fax: +971 4 368 8001
Email: majid.wasi@jiwin.ae

© Press Release 2007