H.E. Salem Humaid AlMarri is the Director General of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre. With over 15 years of experience, AlMarri has been responsible for ensuring the success of various programmes within the UAE National Space Programme including Mars 2117, Emirates Mars Mission, UAE Astronaut Programme, and the UAE Satellite Programme. AlMarri has also overseen the expansion of the MBRSC into new scientific and technical fields alongside ensuring continuing developments in the space sector.
AlMarri has been an integral part of the teams that set up both the Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST) in 2006, which then merged under the umbrella of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) in 2015. He was one of the first engineers to form the core of the Knowledge Transfer Programme based on an agreement with South Korea’s Satrec Initiative.
AlMarri received the UAE Pioneers Award in 2014 for being the first project manager of the UAE satellite Dubaisat-1 and Dubaisat-2. He has represented the UAE and the MBRSC in over 50 international conferences worldwide and has been a returning member of the delegation to the United Nations Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPOUS).
AlMarri was the head of the bidding team that won the rights to host the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Dubai and was also the lead of the organising committee (LOC Chair) for the global event held for the first time ever in an Arab country in Dubai from 25-29 October 2021.