Naguib Sawiris
| Naguib Onsi Sawiris | |
|---|---|
|
Naguib Sawiris, 2009 | |
| Born | 15 June 1954 |
| Nationality | Egyptian |
| Alma mater | ETH Zurich |
| Known for | Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holding S.A.E. |
| Net worth | $3.1 billion (US$) |
Political party | Free Egyptians Party |
| Religion | Coptic Orthodox Christian |
Naguib Onsi Sawiris (or Sawires, Arabic: نجيب انسى ساويرس, IPA: [næˈɡiːb ˈʔonsi sæˈwiːɾɪs] or [sæˈwiːɾes]; born 15 June 1954) is an Egyptian businessman with an interest in public issues.
Background
Naguib Sawiris is Chairman of the Board of Weather Investments II S.à r.l, La Mancha Resources Inc.’s parent company and is also the Executive Chairman of Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holding S.A.E. Since joining Orascom, the family business in 1979, Naguib Sawiris has continuously contributed to the growth and diversification of the company into what it is today – one of Egypt’s largest and most diversified conglomerates and the country’s largest private sector employer. Mr. Sawiris established and built the railway, information technology, and telecommunications sectors of Orascom. The success of these ventures as well as the other sectors of the company led to the management’s decision to split Orascom into separate operating companies in the late 90s: Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH), Orascom Construction Industries (OCI), Orascom Hotels & Development and Orascom Technology Systems (OTS).
As the Founder of Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH), Mr. Sawiris has dynamically led the growth of the company, to be the leading regional telecom player and among the best regarded Emerging Markets players in the world, culminating in the much publicized merger deal between Wind Telecom, the mother company of Orascom Telecom Holding and VimpelCom Ltd. in April 2011. At the time, the merger created the world’s sixth largest mobile telecommunications provider by number of subscribers with operations in 20 countries serving 181 million customers, marking a new milestone in Mr. Sawiris’ long and successful career journey in leading the international growth of both Orascom Telecom and Wind Telecom.
As part of the merger deal, Mr. Sawiris has spun off Orascom Telecom’s non-gsm operations and Egyptian-based telecom assets into Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holding of which he is currently Executive Chairman.
Mr. Sawiris has recently led the full acquisition of La Mancha Resources Inc. through a tender offer launched by Weather Investments II. La Mancha Resources Inc. is an international gold producer based in Canada with operations, development projects and exploration activities in Africa, Australia and Argentina. In August 2012, Mr. Sawiris was appointed as La Mancha’s Chairman of the Board.
Associations
At international and regional levels, Mr. Sawiris serves on several Boards, Committees and Councils:
- Member of the International Advisory Committee to the NYSE Board of Directors (IAC) since November 2005
- Board member of the International Advisory Board to the National Bank of Kuwait
- A member of the Supreme Council of Sciences and Technology among a galaxy of scientists including Nobel laureate Dr. Ahmed Zewail, Dr. Farouk El-Baz, and Dr. Magdi Yacoub.
- Member of both the Board of Trustees and the Board of Directors of the Arab Thought Foundation
- Member of the Board of Trustees of the French University in Egypt
- Vice-Chair of Sawiris Foundation for Social Development
- Member of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs
- Board member of the Consumer Rights Protection Association of Egypt
Political involvements
In the wake of the Egyptian revolution of January 2011, Mr. Sawiris, an avid advocate of democracy and secularism, was one of the 5,000 founding members of the Free Egyptians Party (Al Masreyeen Al Ahrrar), the first and most dynamic liberal party to form after the revolution, today recognized as a leading defender of democratic values, pluralism and the preservation of the civil nature of the Egyptian state.
Awards and recognitions
Mr. Sawiris is also the recipient of numerous honorary degrees, industry awards and civic honors, including the “Legion d’Honneur“ (the highest award given by the French Republic for outstanding services rendered to France). In July 2011 Mr. Sawiris was awarded the Honor of Commander of the Order of the “Stella della solidarietà italiana” (Star of Italian Solidarity) for his outstanding contribution to the Italian economy through his investments in Italy. In 2006, the prestigious “Sitara-e-Quaid-e-Azam” award was conferred upon him by General Pervez Musharraf for services rendered to the people of Pakistan in the field of telecommunication, investments and social sector work.
Education
Mr. Sawiris holds a diploma of Mechanical Engineering with a Masters in Technical Administration from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zürich) and a Diploma from the German Evangelical School, Cairo, Egypt. Mr. Sawiris is married, with four children and lives in Cairo. He speaks Arabic, English, German and French.
Personal life
Naguib Sawiris is the eldest of three brothers. His brothers are Nassef Sawiris and Samih Sawiris. He is the son of Onsi Sawiris who established the Orascom Group.
In 2015 Naguib Sawiris was listed in Forbes magazine as the 544th richest person in the world, with a personal wealth of $3.1 billion.[1]
Sawiris is an Egyptian Christian, following the teachings of the Coptic Orthodox Church.
References
- ↑ "The World's Billionaires", Forbes. 25th January 2015.
Weather Investments S.p.A http://www.windgroup.it/fileadmin/reports/investors_news/2011/it/05-Weather_namechange_01-05-11.pdf