Who is Saleh Abdullah Kmel?
Saleh Abdullah Kamel was born in 1941 in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Since childhood, he has been in love with commerce. He used to make small and simple toys to sell to his friends later. Saleh received his primary and intermediate education in Mecca and Taif, then moved to Jeddah to complete his secondary education. He enrolled at King Saud University in Riyadh in the Faculty of Commerce and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1963.
Saleh’s Greatest Achievements:
Saleh Kamel imported and sold some products early in his life. Later, during the university stage, he opened a small printing shop to print students' notes and continued to do so until he graduated from the university. Then he worked in the government field while he was working in his printing shop.
When he worked at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the company put out a tender for transporting and distributing domestic mail. Kamel seized the opportunity and worked on purchasing a large number of cars in order to distribute mail. This project achieved great success and continued for fifteen years.
In 1982, he founded the entire Dallah Al-Baraka Group, whose investments varied between tourism, media, banking, and real estate. It is one of the most famous investment companies in Jeddah, and it heads its board of directors. This group includes Al Baraka Banking Group, Tawfiq Financial Group, Arab Media Company, and Misk Arab Media Company.
In addition to Arab Radio and Television (ART), Saleh also chairs the Board of Directors of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, the Committee of Participants in the Treasury of Islamic Banks, and the General Council of Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions, in addition to his presidency and membership in other councils and institutions.
Saleh Abdullah Kamel is considered one of the first Saudi investors in the field of media. He was the first to establish a media production institution known as the Arab Media Production Company. He currently owns the Iqraa Islamic channel and is studying a project to open Islamic channels in more than seven languages. He is also a member of a number of social and educational organizations in Arab and foreign countries. He gives lectures on Islamic economics and finance and on banking regulation, development, and social philosophy. Saleh recently established Islamic economics research centers in Saudi Arabia and Egypt and currently owns the Saudi Saher Traffic System at the Ministry of Interior.
The Arab Radio and Television Network (ART) began broadcasting television in 1993 with five channels, until it obtained the rights to a number of sports tournaments exclusively. These tournaments included "FIFA" and the English Premier League, as well as a group of films, series, and entertainment materials, until he concluded a deal to sell channels, programs, and sports tournaments later to the Al-Jazeera channel network for an amount of $2 billion and $750 million.
He was a member of the Board of Trustees of Al-Faisal University, King Abdul Aziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity “Mawhiba,” and the “Arab Thought Foundation.” He was a member of the Arab Academy for Banking and Financial Sciences and the International Academy of Engineering and Media Sciences, in addition to his membership in the Permanent Council of the “Islamic Solidarity Fund” and the advisory board of the President of the “Islamic Development Bank Group.”
Awards & Net Worth:
He received a number of awards and honors, including the Gulf Businessman Award in 1993 and the Banking Man Award from the Islamic Development Bank in 1995 and 1996, respectively. Arabian Business magazine ranked him as the seventh most influential figure among the fifty most powerful Arab personalities in the region and the world in 2006. In addition, he received an honorary doctorate from Al-Hayat Al-Jadida Open University in 2011.
The Saudi businessman Saleh Kamel is considered one of the richest Saudi businessmen, as his wealth is estimated to be at least 8 billion Saudi riyals ($2.3 billion).
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