Career Biography

Reem Tariq Abdullah serves as Vice President – Executive General Counsel, Corporate Legal & Company Secretariat at DP World GCC, where she leads the legal function across all major verticals of the business including Ports & Terminals, Logistics, Parks & Free Zones, Digital Trade and Technology, Shared Services and Manpower & Staffing.

Tariq Abdullah provides strategic legal oversight for DP World across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Syria and Iraq as well as emerging markets such as Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon and Kuwait, where DP World, is now building its regional footprint. Tariq Abdullah’s remit covers the corporate governance of over 40 entities.

Tariq Abdullah led a full-scale transformation of DP World GCC’s Legal function to match DP World’s regional expansion and growth. She expanded the team size from three to 15 within 18 months, demonstrating a fivefold increase in internal capability. Tariq Abdullah embedded functional systems to redirect the department’s capacity from routine contract triage to high-value strategic projects.

Tariq Abdullah reports directly to DP World’s GCC CEO and CFO, sits on the regional leadership team and holds a board seat at P&O Marinas, a group subsidiary. Her mandate spans infrastructure transactions, including port concessions as well as business and asset transfers reflecting her deep integration into driving DP World’s growth agenda.

Over the past year, Tariq Abdullah led landmark, revenue-generating deals aligned with DP World’s 2027 strategy, including an AED 200M acquisition to develop the world’s largest food and auto trading hub under Dubai’s D33 agenda and the launch of nine freight forwarding offices across the GCC. Her portfolio spans DP World’s key regional ports (Jebel Ali, Port Rashid, Hamriyah, Dubai Creek, Jeddah), trade and logistics zones (JAFZA, Dubai Auto Zone, National Industries Park, Fruits & Vegetables Market, Auto Zone Market), digital platforms (Dubai Trade, DP World Digital), and manpower operations (We One). From 2024 to YTD 2025, the Legal department under her leadership doubled its intake volume, sustaining double-digit growth for three consecutive years.

Tariq Abdullah drives a legal operations agenda centred on digitisation, scale, and cost efficiency. She institutionalised DP World GCC’s all-purpose contract repository through GaLexy, transforming it into the department’s central legal engine for triage, intake, approvals, and performance tracking. It now anchors stakeholder reporting on turnaround times and risk categories. Tariq Abdullah also introduced a preferred counsel framework with fixed fees, panel arrangements, and a formal appointment policy to tighten engagement standards and curb spend leakage. She further standardised incentive, storage, and terminal services agreements for major ports such as Jebel Ali and Jeddah.

Tariq Abdullah leads a 15-member, 80% female team qualified across four jurisdictions, including six direct reports. She prioritises clear career pathways, driving individual development plans, mentorship frameworks, and continuous learning. She also launched internship programmes for GCC nationals and fosters a culture of growth and value-driven development. Tariq Abdullah previously received an Honourable Mention for General Counsel of the Year at the 2025 LexisNexis Women in Law Awards for her role in scaling DP World GCC’s Legal function with a strategy grounded in quality and agility.