Yahoo – AFP,
Ian Timberlake, 1 July 2015
 |
Saudi Prince
Alwaleed bin Talal answers questions during a 2011 press
conference in Riyadh
(AFP Photo/Fayez Nureldine)
|
Riyadh
(AFP) - Saudi tycoon Prince Alwaleed bin Talal on Wednesday promised his entire
$32 billion (28.8 billion euro) fortune to charitable projects in coming years,
in one of the biggest ever such pledges.
The pledge
is "maybe... the first such big announcement" of its kind in the
region, and is modelled on a charity established by Microsoft founder Bill
Gates in the United States, the prince told reporters.
Alwaleed
said his charity "will help build bridges to foster cultural
understanding, develop communities, empower women, enable youth, provide vital
disaster relief and create a more tolerant and accepting world."
The money
"will be allocated according to a well-devised plan throughout the coming
years", he said, but stressed there was no time limit for the donation to
be spent.
Alwaleed
said he would head a board of trustees tasked with spending the funds, which
would still be used after his death "for humanitarian projects and
initiatives".
The
60-year-old magnate belongs to the Saudi royal family and is a nephew of king
Abdullah, who died on January 23.
In the
conservative Muslim kingdom, Alwaleed, who holds no government rank, is unusual
for his high profile and periodic comments about economic issues.
"We
are clearly in very close coordination with the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation", which is already working with Alwaleed on a polio eradication
project, he said.
"This
is very much separate from my ownership in Kingdom Holding," and there
should be no impact on the publicly listed company's share price, Alwaleed told
reporters on the 66th-floor headquarters of the firm which he chairs.
'Dramatic
and drastic'
But he said
his charitable commitment would provide even more incentive for his business
investments to be profitable.
As well as
media stakes, Kingdom Holding has interests ranging from the Euro Disney theme
park to Four Seasons hotels and Citigroup.
Alwaleed is
constructing a tower in the Red Sea city of Jeddah that is to rise more than
one kilometre (almost 3,300 feet) to be the world's tallest building.
Earlier
this year, he opened a pan-Arab news channel in Bahrain but authorities there
shut the station after less than 24 hours on air and a new home is being
sought.
Alwaleed
last week in Paris signed a letter of intent with France's CDC International
Capital to create the first French-Saudi investment fund, worth up to $400
million.
A separate
deal saw a French consortium and CDC IC invest about $150 million in Kingdom
Holding.
Alwaleed
told reporters he has already donated a total of $3.5 billion over more than 35
years through his Alwaleed Philanthropies.
The charity
has distributed houses and provided electricity to isolated Saudi communities,
while supporting other projects around the world.
He said he
announced his pledge now, after years of preparation, to institutionalise the
process "so they can continue after my lifetime".
Flanked by
his son Prince Khaled and daughter Princess Reem, he said they will be
president and vice-president of the charity after he dies.
"I
believe that a person should take dramatic and drastic decisions at his
peak," Alwaleed said, proclaiming himself to be in good shape.
"I'm
very healthy, enough to bike every day three hours," he said. "I
assure you my health is good."
 |
Tim Cook is
one of many high-profile business people in the US, including
Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffet,
in giving at least 50% of their
wealth to
charity. Photograph: Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
|
Related Articles:
No comments:
Post a Comment