Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid Al Qasimi, Minister of Development and International Co-operation, has paid rich tribute to women for their tremendous role in the nation-building process. "Women here, they have achieved tremendously, from pilots in airlines to actually being part of the Civil Defence. They are soldiers. They are in the military. They are also in the special security services," she informed a "Women in Industry Panel", held on the second day of ADIPEC, the oil and gas conference being held at Adnec. "They are everywhere. And this is really what is the true story of the UAE. But I have to say that we were there and we have come to this level because we had great men," Sheikha Lubna was quoted by The National (Abu Dhabi's English language daily) as telling the female-only audience. Sheikha Lubna, who led the panel, paid tribute to everything that women have achieved in the UAE - and also what has been done for them, such as in terms of government policy. She spoke of the qualities that women have, such as compassion for their employees, saying, "We relate to them as we relate to our own family and I think that's the golden rule." During the discussion, she offered encouragement and advice to women who are hesitant in their careers and worried about entering an industry that they are concerned may be too competitive. The Minister urged all women to have confidence, to believe in themselves, and take that first step - do the challenging job, pointing out that if they fail, they can learn from it. "Sometimes in the Arab culture, men and women both avoid this business of failure because they think everyone will tell them 'I told you so'. But who is there to judge? Take your first step, if it doesn't work, at least you know. You know your boundaries." Source: WAM