The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

A recent list by Forbes announced the 18 wealthiest people in the continent, all of whom are men, with five billionaires on the list from Cairo, Egypt, and all belonging to the Sawiris and Mansour families. How did they get there? What does their work entail? We’ve certainly got a lot to learn from the financial tycoons. For starters, we can learn of their background and education, their achievements and of course, net-worth. Perhaps that would shed light on what makes them who they are and what it takes to achieve such impeccable success.

Nassef Sawiris

The youngest of the renowned Sawiris brothers is the second richest man in the continent, following Aliko Dangote of Nigeria, creator and CEO of the continent’s largest cement producer. Nassif Sawiris is a descendent of Egypt’s wealthiest family, and he graduated with a BA in Arts & Science from the University of Chicago. Sawiris holds a 6% stake in Adidas, and a 5% stake New York’s MSG Sports, who feature some of the most recognised teams in professional sports, including the New York Nicks and the New York Rangers. Sawiris also owns the notable engineering and building firm, Orascom Construction and runs OCI, one of the world’s largest nitrogen fertiliser producers based in Texas and Iowa. His net worth is 8.4 billion dollars.

Naguib Sawiris

Second on our list is the oldest Sawiris brother, Naguib, coming in at 8^th place after Issad Rebrab of Algeria, owner of Cevital the world’s largest sugar refineries. Naguib Sawiris is the chairman of Orascom TMT Investments, which has stakes in Egypt and Italy. Sawiris graduated with a BA in Arts & Science, and a Masters in Science from the Swiss Federal Polytechnical Institute. He built his fortune after selling Orascom Telecom to the Russian telecom firm Veon. Sawiris owns 88% of Euronews and a luxury resort on the Caribbean island of Grenada. His net worth is 3.2 billion dollars.

Mohamed Mansour

Number 11 on the list of Africa’s richest billionaires is none other than Mohamed Mansour at 2.5 billion dollars, following Koos Bekker of South Africa, owner of the eCommerce investor and cable TV powerhouse, Naspers. Mansour is the executive supervisor of the family’s multifaceted company, Mansour Group, founded by his late father, Loutfy, in 1952. Mansour Group also holds exclusive distribution rights for Caterpillar equipment in Egypt. Mansour is the owner of General Motors dealerships and one of their biggest distributors worldwide. Graduated with a Masters in Business Administration at Auburn University, the diversified billionaire is self-made (as is the case with his entire family and their fortunes) and served as Minister of Transportation from 2006 to 2009.

Youssef Mansour

At 14^th place is the eldest brother and chairman of the family-owned Mansour Group, Youssef Mansour, at 1.5 billion dollars, following Mohammed Dewji of Tanzania, owner of the textile manufacturer, flour milling, beverages, and edible oils METL. Graduated with a Masters in Business Administration at Auburn University and a BA in Engineering at the North Carolina State University, Mansour oversees the Mansour Group’s consumer goods division, which includes supermarket chain, Metro. He also has sole distribution rights for L’Oreal in Egypt.

Yasseen Mansour

The youngest Mansour brother is the 18^th richest man in the continent, with a net worth of 1.1 billion dollars. Graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Arts & Science at the George Washington University, Mansour is a shareholder in the family-owned Mansour Group and chairman of Palm Hills Developments, one of Egypt’s largest real estate developers. Mansour Group is also the sole franchisee of Mcdonald’s in Egypt.