FORBES BILLIONAIRE NAGUIB SAWIRIS, PIONEERING PHILANTHROPIST OLA GHABOUR HONORED BY EGYPTIAN DIASPORA
Sawiris, Ghabour call for more non-sectarian programs to address development needs of Egyptian homeland at 20th anniversary celebration of international NGO

NEW YORK, NY, October 25, 2008 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Leaders from the Egyptian diaspora honored Naguib Sawiris and Ola Ghabour as joint recipients of the 2008 Leading by Example Award during the Coptic Orphans 20th anniversary gala at the Marriott New York Downtown on Saturday, October 18th, 2008. Sawiris and Ghabour stressed the need for supporters of Egypt's development to focus on programs that move beyond charity and serve to raise up all humanity.

The Leading by Example Award honors those who, through their life and actions, have set an example for others by overcoming great obstacles to build a better future for children.

Both Sawiris and Ghabour praised the non-sectarian and unifying nature of the work of Coptic Orphans over the last 20 years. "It is not about whether you are Christian or Muslim or Buddhist. The cause today is larger... the cause today is humanity," said Ghabour. Ghabour was the catalyst for the donor-supported establishment of Egypt's Children's Cancer Hospital, the first state-of-the-art hospital in the Middle East dedicated to children with cancer, which provides care to qualifying families completely free of charge.

Naguib Sawiris, Chairman and CEO of Orascom Telecom Holdings, emphasized the importance of development programs that include all Egyptians, regardless of religion. Sawiris also recognized the power of a united Egyptian diaspora to solve the common problems of Egypt, and warned against relying on the great achievements of the past alone to keep the country strong. "Sometimes I think we should demolish the pyramids so that we will have to build something new to show the world what we can achieve," he joked, adding, "The roots of this civilization are in all of us. I am sure we will have our comeback- though it may take time."

Nermien Riad, Executive Director of Coptic Orphans, summed up the common call of both Sawiris and Ghabour when she shared a personal and organizational dream of "all the friends of Egypt, coming together to offer the best asset that each of us has to give." Riad made clear that the development efforts of the Coptic diaspora, while faith-based, involve all players at every level both in Egypt and in the nations of immigration.

The diversity of the audience reflected Riad's words. The gala was the first public function attended by the new Egyptian Ambassador to the U.S., Ashraf Shoukry. Ambassador Shoukry addressed an audience of nearly 200 prominent members of the Egyptian community and supporters, including UN Ambassador Maged Abdel Aziz, and Hussein Mubarak, the Egyptian Consul to New York, along with the President David Arnold of the American University in Cairo and his wife. Ms. Dina Powell, the Director of Global Corporate Engagement with Goldman Sachs and a former Assistant Secretary in the U.S. State Department of the White House, presented Ms. Manal Moussa, a participant in Coptic Orphans' programs in Upper Egypt, with an award from the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Partnership. The Partnership sponsors women from underserved areas to pursue higher education in business so that they can contribute to the development of their countries.
The event raised more than $200,000 for children in Egypt, and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the "Ola Ghabour Children's Health Fund" of Coptic Orphans.

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Nathan Hollenbeck
Coptic Orphans
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