Saudis Welcome Prince Alwaleed Gifts

Alwaleed, 60, a nephew of the late Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, a grandson of Ibn Saud, the first Saudi King.

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

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RIYADH – Fulfilling a promise to donate his $32bn fortune to charity, a member of the Saudi royal family has demonstrated the magnanimity of his spirit on thousands of Saudi nationals according to the Arab News.

“What I possess is a gift from Allah. I was born and brought up in this dear country, the most precious place for me to give and share with its people. In whatever I do, I am thankful to and seek the countenance of Allah”, stated HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, also founder and chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), one of the world's most successful and diversified financial investment enterprises.

Alwaleed, 60, a nephew of the late Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, a grandson of Ibn Saud, the first Saudi King, and a grandson of Riad Al Solh, Lebanon's first Prime Minister, further stated to Arab News that in the years ahead his assets would be transferred to the Alwaleed Philanthropic Foundation, through which the fortune would be distributed upon his death.

The Prince further stated in a Guardian report, that his fortune would be divided among programmes promoting health, modernisation, intercultural understanding, and toward the empowerment of women.

"This donation will be allocated according to a well-devised plan throughout the coming years," Alwaleed stated. "Philanthropy is a personal responsibility, which I embarked upon more than three decades ago and is an intrinsic part of my Islamic faith.

"With this pledge, I am honouring my life-long commitment to what matters most –helping to build a more peaceful, equitable and sustainable world for generations to come."

Effect of Bequeath for Saudi Nationals

Alwaleed Philanthropies consists of three philanthropic organizations: Alwaleed Philanthropies Global, focusing on philanthropic and humanitarian projects around the world, Alwaleed Philanthropies Lebanon, which is focused on the social and community needs of Lebanon, and Alwaleed Philanthropies Saudi Arabia, which focuses on the needs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

It is estimated that the total number of beneficiaries among Saudi men and women will reach 100,000 over a reported 10-year period, to include granting over 10,000 cars and 10,000 housing units to Saudi nationals.

The housing units will be distributed on an average of 1,000 units per year to beneficiaries who do not qualify for housing under the Housing Ministry’s System.

According to statistics posted on the foundation’s website, 1,240 housing units have already been distributed to a number of beneficiaries, encompassing 10,558 men and women.

The Philanthropist has said earlier that the pledge was modelled on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and other philanthropic funds in the United States.

Alwaleed, via Twitter, called upon Saudi citizens willing to benefit from the grants to submit their requests to the Alwaleed Foundation website.

Erem News reported that the Alwaleed Foundation received thousands of requests shortly after the Prince’s tweet.

The Arab News reported that Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, said: "Prince Alwaleed's generous commitment promises to significantly extend the great work that his foundation is already doing. His gift is an inspiration to all of us working in philanthropy around the world."

Alwaleed emphasized that the announcement was not predicated on any health reasons rather, that his decision was based merely on the dictates of the Qur'an.

At a media briefing in Riyadh, Alwaleed also used the opportunity to push his version of the size of his fortune, which he says is $32bn, rather than the $22.6bn estimated by Forbes in its 2015 list of The 500 Richest People In The World, which put him in 34th position among fellow billionaires.

According to FORBES' latest ranking – besting last year's record-breaking $6.4 trillion sum by a hefty $650 billion – the world's billionaires are worth $7.05 trillion.

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