The South Africa and Middle East leg of My Most Trusted,
a national and global super-community of
90,814
trusted connections in our Trusted Universe, November 2026
South Africa · Middle East
the mawsim. Arabic for the season. It is where the word monsoon comes from: the time of year when the wind turned and the Indian Ocean could be crossed.
Take a tour of the South Africa-Middle East Bridge Who stands at each end
The South Africa-Middle East Business Bridge is for South African businesses that want clients, partners or investors in the Gulf and the wider Middle East, and for firms there that want a South African partner they can trust from the first conversation.
Dubai is two hours ahead of Johannesburg and Riyadh one, so the working days line up almost completely. What does not line up is who knows whom. In the Gulf, a great deal of business is done on personal recommendation, and a well written email from a stranger rarely reaches the person who decides.
It is also where careers move. Members in South Africa and Middle East sometimes meet their next employer, find their next job or make their next hire through The South Africa-Middle East Business Bridge, because the best roles are often filled by someone a trusted person recommends.
South Africa and the Gulf both do business on relationships, but they build them differently and on a different week. Each end of this Bridge has its own person, who lives there and knows how a yes is reached on their side.
South AfricaCape Town
Dina Gates holds the South African end of the Bridge, from Cape Town. She runs Dina Gates Recruitment, where she works as a talent acquisition specialist, finding the right people for businesses that are growing. Her work already turns on the thing this Bridge is built on: the best candidate, like the best business contact, usually arrives through somebody who can vouch for them. She meets people face to face in Cape Town and online anywhere.
More about DinaMiddle Eastseat open
The founding Middle East host seat is open. One person in the Gulf will hold this end. Someone the region already trusts, who wants to choose the first members on their side personally and bring them across to South Africa.
Talk to us about itA plain guide for South African business owners who want clients, partners or investors in Dubai, Riyadh, Doha and the wider Middle East. Why cold outreach rarely reaches the person who decides, how the Gulf working week differs, and why a personal introduction matters more there than almost anywhere.
Read How do Gulf companies find South African talent they can trust?Dubai, Riyadh and Doha hire South Africans by the thousand, engineers, nurses, finance people and teachers. How Gulf employers find the good ones, and why a trusted introduction beats a stack of CVs.
Mostly through people, not portals. A Gulf employer asks someone they trust, who knows a strong candidate or a recruiter they would vouch for. The South Africa-Middle East Business Bridge, part of My Most Trusted, is hosted in Cape Town by recruiter Dina Gates, who makes those introductions. Read more
Dina Gates, of Dina Gates Recruitment in Cape Town, hosts the South African side of the South Africa-Middle East Business Bridge. The Gulf host seat is open. Members are part of My Most Trusted's wider network.
Through trusted introductions to people already doing business in Dubai, Riyadh or Doha, patience with relationship-first business culture, and good local advice. The South Africa-Middle East Business Bridge, part of My Most Trusted, connects members across that line.
Long before anyone flew from Cape Town to Dubai, the Indian Ocean was already a trading floor. Merchants from Arabia and the Gulf sailed with the mawsim, the season when the wind turned and made the crossing possible, and at every port they relied on a trusted agent who knew the local market and would vouch for them. The flight now takes eight to ten hours, and the old rule still holds: the crossing is easy once somebody at the other end knows who you are.