Face-to-face with the world’s wealthiest Arab Prince…
Ambassador Hits Royal Jackpot in Saudi
The Chairman of one of the world’s most successful diversified investment companies, the Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) on Sunday, 25th May, 2014 received Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at his 66th floor office in the Kingdom Tower (the distinctive bottle opener-shaped skyscraper that looms over central Riyadh, the capital). (Photo: Ambassador Kargbo and Team in Prince Alwaleed’s office)
The meeting began as His Excellency; Ambassador Alhaji Mohamed Sillah Kargbo thanked His Royal Highness Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for giving him the opportunity to meet with him as this was His Excellency’s first meeting with His Royal Highness since he assumed office as Ambassador of Sierra Leone to Saudi Arabia about eight weeks ago.
The Ambassador further conveyed the fraternal and friendly greetings of Sierra Leone’s President, His Excellency Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma, the Government and people of Sierra Leone to the HRH Prince Alwaleed.
The envoy also used the opportunity to thank the Prince on behalf of His Excellency, the President, the Government and people of Sierra Leone for his donation of $1 million last year through the Alwaleed Bin Talal Foundation -Global to Sierra Leone, the purpose of which was to fund the President’s Free-Health Care Initiative and Youth Employment in the country. The money, Ambassador Kargbo told the Prince, was utilized judiciously.
Head of Chancery Umaru Dura introducing the Ambassador Kargbo to Prince Alwaleed
President Koroma’s envoy also commended His Royal Highness on his local, regional and international investment programmes, and on his numerous achievements which, according to Ambassador Kargbo, have successfully propelled the wheel of economic development in the countries where the Prince has been investing. Kargbo applauded the Prince’s remarkable success in investing in emerging economies and commended his philanthropic efforts in Africa. He and the Prince discussed about the areas of investment that the Prince had proposed during his last visit to Sierra Leone in June last year.
In response, Prince Alwaleed reciprocated the same feelings and asked the Ambassador to relay his cordial regards to President Koroma. The celebrated Prince hailed President Koroma’s tenure, which, he said, has proven to be very successful.
He said he was impressed with the current development strides in the country and the nation’s good governance record. The Billionaire Prince also expressed optimism in the Sierra Leone economy. “From my last visit to Sierra Leone, the globally renowned Prince said, I observed that Sierra Leone is one of the key countries to invest in. It has a promising return for investors,” he reiterated. He disclosed that his company has established a special investment fund for Africa, and Sierra Leone will be one of the beneficiaries.
Prince Alwaleed Receives Amb. M.S. Kargbo
The meeting was attended by Dr. Nahla Nasser Alanbar, Private Executive Assistant to HRH the Chairman and one of his Assistants. The Ambassador was accompanied by Umaru Dura, the Mission’s Head of Chancery, Salamu Koroma, First Secretary, Yealie B. Sesay, Confidential Secretary and M.B. Jalloh, Press Secretary.
It could be recalled that the KHC Chairman visited Sierra Leone to explore investment opportunities on Monday 10th June, 2013. During that visit, His Excellency, President Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma decorated His Royal Highness with the highest National Award in the country, the Grand Commander of the Order of the Republic of Sierra Leone (GCRSL).
Although the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Sierra Leone have enjoyed bilateral and economic relationship spanning from 1979, the visit of HRH Prince Alwaleed to Sierra Leone was a re-assurance of the concrete relationship that has existed between the two countries. It was also an indication that the bilateral and economic relationship between the two countries was growing from strength to strength.
Who is Prince Alwaleed?
He is the richest Arab in the world, according to the widely read Arabian Business Magazine. His Royal Highness (HRH) Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has keen interest in investment; he is a Western trained businessman. He is a man who has huge investments in almost every nook and cranny of the world; he is a man who is ready to invest in whatever legal form of project that he believes can yield dividends; and he is a man who is so compassionate about the abject poverty of nations of the developing countries.
According to the renowned Forbes Magazine, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Company, of which he owns 95% and which trades on the Saudi stock exchange, owns stakes in hotel management companies, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Movenpick Hotels & Resorts and Fairmont Raffles Holding, as well as hotel real estate such as the swanky Hotel George V in Paris and a stake in the Savoy Hotel in London.
The Kingdom Holding Company, according to the Magazine, also owns billions of U.S dollars and international equities, including shares of Citigroup and News Corp. In 2012, the Prince and Kingdom Holding bought an estimated 3% stake in Twitter, a popular social networking site, via the secondary market for $300 million. He is ranked by Forbes, Time Magazine, and many other influential publications among the most influential businessmen and investors in the world.
He has investments in a number of sectors in Africa such as: Tourism, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Telecommunications. That indicates his interest in the African continent for economic and social prosperity.
Born in 1955, Prince Alwaleed received a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Menlo College in California in 1979. He then received a Master’s degree in Social Science with honours from Syracuse University, New York, in 1985.
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