Samih Sawiris, Chairman and CEO Orascom Development Holding SA

After attending the German School in Cairo, Samih Sawiris graduated from the Technical University of Berlin with a Diploma in Economic Engineering in 1980. Samih Sawiris is Chairman and CEO of the newly established Swiss holding company Orascom Development Holding SA (OD Holding) with headquarters in Altdorf, Switzerland. OD Holding is the parent company of Cairo based Orascom Hotels & Development (OHD) since May 2008. OHD today is a leading integrated town developer in Egypt and the Middle East which develops and manages fully fledged touristic towns.
With the development of El Gouna town on the Red Sea in 1989, Samih Sawiris laid the foundation stone for OHD. El Gouna holds 15 hotels, managed by OHD's brands and international hotels chains such as Moevenpick, Sheraton, and Club Med. El Gouna was awarded four "Green Globe 21" certificates for its admirable respect of environmental principles.
Apart from El Gouna, OHD runs Taba Heights, its second integrated town located on the Gulf of Aqaba (Sinai, Egypt), the Tala Bay Aqaba Resort in Jordan and "The Cove" Resort”, which is under construction on the Persian Gulf Coast in Ras Al Kheima (United Arab Emirates). Furthermore, OHD tourism resorts under development are located on the Gulf of Oman.

In Switzerland, Samih Sawiris got a rare permission from the Swiss government to develop a luxury resort in Alpine Village of Andermatt. OHD is the first company in the Swiss history to be granted exemptions from "Lex Koller" regulations, which relates to the restriction of non-residents to own land/real estate in Switzerland. 
Last but not least, Samih has started his Low income housing project in Egypt whose target is to offer affordable housing all across Egypt. The first development is 8.4 Million square meters in Six of October city with initial target of 50,000 units built in the first five to seven years. The second development is located in El Fayoum of 20,000 square meters.