The Daily Star: Time for the private sector to step up

By Zafar Sobhan

I'LL admit that I was less than enthused to learn that an integral part of a recent conference that I was attending in Jordan was a field trip to learn something about the activities of one of the country's most prominent NGOs.

I mean, honestly. Bangladesh is the land of NGOs, and I have spent my fair share of time seeing, and I will concede, being inspired by, the activities of NGOs in Bangladesh. I figured that it would be more of the same in Amman, except dustier. How wrong I was.

In the first place, the truth is that however jaded or been-there-done-that we might feel about touring NGOs, it never, in actual fact, fails to impress when one actually witnesses first-hand the work they do and speaks with both those who dedicate their lives to the service of others and those whose lives have been transformed by the helping hand they have received.

Ruwwad was no expection. It is run by Fadi Ghandour, whose day job is founder and CEO of Aramex, the Federal Express/DHL of the Arab world. He has built his business from nothing into one of the best and most widely respected companies in the Middle East. As an entrepreneur and business executive alone, Fadi would merit plaudits, as a pioneer and visionary who has brought first-world standards of service to the developing world and whose business is a model of excellence for the region. (more)