Nadhmi Auchi
Encyclopedia
Nadhmi Shakir Auchi, is a British Iraqi
businessman and billionaire, founding president of the Anglo Arab Organisation, and the founder and chairman of General Mediterranean Holding (GMH), a conglomerate of 120 companies worldwide. As of 2011 his net worth was estimated by Forbes
to be $1.8 billion, making him the 692nd richest person in the world.
, before going on to study at Baghdad's Mustansiriyah University. He married his wife Ibtisam in 1963, and together they have 2 daughters, born in 1964 and 1972 respectively. In 1980, he and his family fled to London following an extortion attempt by an enforcer for Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
. Six years later, Auchi's younger brother Naseer was hanged by the Baathist regime after discovering the extent of al-Tikriti's corruption. Auchi became a British citizen in 1989 and currently resides in London. He and his wife are practising Muslims and have aimed to promote inter-faith dialogue, unity among Arab states, and to build bridges between the West and the Arab world through charitable and humanitarian work, for which Auchi has been recognised.
. He was also Vice-Chair of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
from 1996 and 2000.
He has been president of the Anglo Arab Organisation (AAO), since its founding in 2002. The AAO is a private non-profit making organisation, promoting the integration of British Arabs into mainstream British society, whilst retaining their identity. AAO's achievements include donating money to families affected by the earthquake in Pakistan
in 2005, building a school in the earthquake-devastated town of Hoceima, Morocco
and hosting a charity gala that collected £35,000 in donations to the benefit of the Cancer Research Unit of the Kingston Hospital
in London. Auchi and AAO have also led and sponsored high level delegations made up of Arab, British and French dignitaries, religious and political figures pressing for the release of hostages in Baghdad, including securing the release of two French journalists, Christian Chesnot
and Georges Malbrunot
and their Syrian driver in 2004.
In 2007, Auchi, in collaboration with the American University in Cairo
(AUC) announced the launch of the 'Nadhmi Auchi fellowship for young Arab leaders', a fellowship dedicated to the development of the abilities of Arab youth in institution management and leadership. Auchi pays the full study and living costs of 10 students from Egypt
and other Arab states. The fellowship plan was announced during an annual ceremony at the Egyptian Embassy in London to celebrate AUC achievements.
, made him an Officer of the Order of the Republic. In 2002, he was also awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of Independence by King Abdullah II of Jordan
.
In 2003, Auchi was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Francis I
(GCFO) by Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro
, this in recognition of his major contributions to inter-church and inter-faith dialogue. Queen Elizabeth II granted him a Coat of Arms
in 2004. In the same year the president of the Republic of Lebanon, Émile Lahoud
, awarded Auchi with the First Grade of the Lebanese Order of Merit, having already appointed him as a Commander of the National Order of the Cedar
in 2000. He was made a Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester
(KSS) by Pope John Paul II
in 2004.
In 2005 Auchi was made Grao-Mestre da Ordem do Merito Anhanguera in Brazil and was elected as an Honorary Member in the International College of Surgeons in Chicago
, Illinois
.
Auchi was awarded 'The Presidential Prize' in 2007 by the President of the American University in Cairo, this in appreciation of his efforts in supporting higher education in the Arab World.
, described as "the biggest political and corporate sleaze scandal to hit a western democracy since the second world war". Auchi was given a $ 2.8 million fine, along with a 15 month suspended jail sentence, for his involvement in the 1991 purchase by Elf Aquitaine of various Spanish oil refineries and petrol stations, having been accused by prosecutors of funnelling $118 million of illegal commissions back to the Elf executives who had initially set up the deal.
Following the verdict, Elf (by now merged with TotalFina and re-named Total) decided to take legal action against Auchi in France; Auchi responded by suing Total for $327 million in turn, this time in the UK.
British Iraqis
British Iraqis are people of Iraqi ancestry who were born in or who reside in the United Kingdom.-History:The UK has had a significant Iraqi population since the late 1940s. Refugees including liberal and radical intellectuals dissatisfied with the monarchist regime moved to the UK at this time....
businessman and billionaire, founding president of the Anglo Arab Organisation, and the founder and chairman of General Mediterranean Holding (GMH), a conglomerate of 120 companies worldwide. As of 2011 his net worth was estimated by Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
to be $1.8 billion, making him the 692nd richest person in the world.
Personal Life
Born in the Karadat Mariam area of Baghdad, Iraq in 1937, Auchi attended Al Mansoor Primary School and Baghdad College High SchoolBaghdad College
Baghdad College is an elite high school for boys in Baghdad, Iraq. It is among the nation's most highly regarded preparatory schools, boasting several well-known alumni and countless Iraqi professionals and intellectuals now living throughout the world...
, before going on to study at Baghdad's Mustansiriyah University. He married his wife Ibtisam in 1963, and together they have 2 daughters, born in 1964 and 1972 respectively. In 1980, he and his family fled to London following an extortion attempt by an enforcer for Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
Barzan Ibrahim al-Hasan al-Tikriti was one of three half-brothers of Saddam Hussein, and a leader of the Mukhabarat, the Iraqi intelligence service...
. Six years later, Auchi's younger brother Naseer was hanged by the Baathist regime after discovering the extent of al-Tikriti's corruption. Auchi became a British citizen in 1989 and currently resides in London. He and his wife are practising Muslims and have aimed to promote inter-faith dialogue, unity among Arab states, and to build bridges between the West and the Arab world through charitable and humanitarian work, for which Auchi has been recognised.
Education and career
Auchi graduated with a B.Sc. in Economics and Political Science from the Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, in 1967. He also worked with the Iraqi Ministry of Oil, becoming Director of Planning and Development in 1969. In 1979 he founded General Mediterranean Holding SA in LuxembourgLuxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
. He was also Vice-Chair of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
from 1996 and 2000.
He has been president of the Anglo Arab Organisation (AAO), since its founding in 2002. The AAO is a private non-profit making organisation, promoting the integration of British Arabs into mainstream British society, whilst retaining their identity. AAO's achievements include donating money to families affected by the earthquake in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
in 2005, building a school in the earthquake-devastated town of Hoceima, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and hosting a charity gala that collected £35,000 in donations to the benefit of the Cancer Research Unit of the Kingston Hospital
Kingston Hospital
Kingston Hospital is an acute NHS hospital in Kingston upon Thames, South West London. It has an Accident & Emergency Unit, a popular midwife-led Maternity unit, and an STD clinic known as the Wolverton Centre...
in London. Auchi and AAO have also led and sponsored high level delegations made up of Arab, British and French dignitaries, religious and political figures pressing for the release of hostages in Baghdad, including securing the release of two French journalists, Christian Chesnot
Christian Chesnot
Christian Chesnot is a French journalist working for Radio France who, along with Georges Malbrunot and Muhammed al-Jundi , was taken hostage on August 20, 2004, by the Islamic Army in Iraq. This group gave the French government a 48-hour deadline to repeal its law on secularity and conspicuous...
and Georges Malbrunot
Georges Malbrunot
George Malbrunot is a French journalist working for Le Figaro who, along with Christian Chesnot and their Syrian driver Muhammed al-Jundi, was taken hostage on August 20, 2004, by the Islamic Army in Iraq. This group gave the French government a 48-hour deadline to repeal its law against girls...
and their Syrian driver in 2004.
In 2007, Auchi, in collaboration with the American University in Cairo
American University in Cairo
The American University in Cairo is an independent, non-profit, apolitical, secular institution of higher learning located in Cairo, Egypt...
(AUC) announced the launch of the 'Nadhmi Auchi fellowship for young Arab leaders', a fellowship dedicated to the development of the abilities of Arab youth in institution management and leadership. Auchi pays the full study and living costs of 10 students from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and other Arab states. The fellowship plan was announced during an annual ceremony at the Egyptian Embassy in London to celebrate AUC achievements.
Honours and awards
In 1996, the now-deposed President of the Tunisian Republic, Zine El Abidine Ben AliZine El Abidine Ben Ali
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali is a Tunisian political figure who was the second President of Tunisia from 1987 to 2011. Ben Ali was appointed Prime Minister in October 1987, and he assumed the Presidency on 7 November 1987 in a bloodless coup d'état that ousted President Habib Bourguiba, who was...
, made him an Officer of the Order of the Republic. In 2002, he was also awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of Independence by King Abdullah II of Jordan
Abdullah II of Jordan
Abdullah II ibn al-Hussein is the reigning King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. He ascended the throne on 7 February 1999 after the death of his father King Hussein. King Abdullah, whose mother is Princess Muna al-Hussein, is a member of the Hashemite family...
.
In 2003, Auchi was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Francis I
Royal Order of Francis I
The Royal Order of Francis I is a dynastic Order of Knighthood of the Royal House of Bourbon Two Sicilies...
(GCFO) by Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro
Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro
Prince Carlo of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro is one of two claimants to the headship of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.-Early life and education:...
, this in recognition of his major contributions to inter-church and inter-faith dialogue. Queen Elizabeth II granted him a Coat of Arms
English heraldry
English heraldry is the form of coats of arms and other heraldic bearings and insignia used in England. It lies within the Gallo-British tradition. Coats of arms in England are regulated and granted to individuals by the College of Arms. They are subject to a system of cadency to distinguish...
in 2004. In the same year the president of the Republic of Lebanon, Émile Lahoud
Émile Lahoud
General Émile Jamil Lahoud is a former President of Lebanon. Lahoud is a Maronite-Catholic, as is required for the Lebanese presidency. Under Lebanon's unwritten constitutional agreement, the National Pact, the presidency is earmarked for Maronite_Catholic, the parliament speaker's post for a Shia...
, awarded Auchi with the First Grade of the Lebanese Order of Merit, having already appointed him as a Commander of the National Order of the Cedar
National Order of the Cedar
The National Order of the Cedar is a prestigious civilian and military award and Medal of the Lebanese Government. This Order is the highest decoration in Lebanon and is made up of five Grades :* Grand Cordon...
in 2000. He was made a Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester
Order of St. Sylvester
The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Sylvester Pope and Martyr , sometimes referred to as the Sylvestrine Order, or the Pontifical Order of Pope St Sylvester, is one of five Orders of Knighthood awarded directly by the Pope as Supreme Pontiff and head of the Catholic Church and as the Head of...
(KSS) by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
in 2004.
In 2005 Auchi was made Grao-Mestre da Ordem do Merito Anhanguera in Brazil and was elected as an Honorary Member in the International College of Surgeons in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
Auchi was awarded 'The Presidential Prize' in 2007 by the President of the American University in Cairo, this in appreciation of his efforts in supporting higher education in the Arab World.
Conviction for fraud
In 2003, Auchi was convicted of fraud following his involvement in a $504 million corruption scandal centred around the French oil company Elf AquitaineElf Aquitaine
Elf Aquitaine was a French oil company which merged with TotalFina to form TotalFinaElf. The new company changed its name to Total in 2003...
, described as "the biggest political and corporate sleaze scandal to hit a western democracy since the second world war". Auchi was given a $ 2.8 million fine, along with a 15 month suspended jail sentence, for his involvement in the 1991 purchase by Elf Aquitaine of various Spanish oil refineries and petrol stations, having been accused by prosecutors of funnelling $118 million of illegal commissions back to the Elf executives who had initially set up the deal.
Following the verdict, Elf (by now merged with TotalFina and re-named Total) decided to take legal action against Auchi in France; Auchi responded by suing Total for $327 million in turn, this time in the UK.
External links
- Nadhmi Auchi profile at the Sunday Times Rich ListSunday Times Rich ListThe Sunday Times Rich List is a list of the 1,000 wealthiest people or families in the United Kingdom, updated annually in April and published as a magazine supplement by British national Sunday newspaper The Sunday Times since 1989...
- General Mediterranean Holding website
- Anglo Arab Organisation