The Gulf’s most admired executives

Dr Ahmed Samerai is the founder and chairman of the Dubai-based SAHARA Group. The SAHARA Group operates across a wide range of sectors including real estate, advisory, public relations and hospitality. The group’s media arm, SAHARA Communications, is one of the leading public relations firms in the Middle East. Dr Samerai is also the chairman of Hugo Plaza, one of the most luxuriously furnished penthouses in Dubai’s Downtown. In addition, Dr Samerai sits on the board of several companies, including Tanmiyat Partners (part of the Saudi Tanmiyat Group) and Ajman Marina, the $2bn joint venture with the government of Ajman.

Dr Samerai is a highly regarded philanthropist in the Arab world. He established the Al Samerai Foundation, which – among other efforts – has sponsored Larry King’s ‘Save Our Gulf’ campaign and the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice & Human Rights.

He has supported Middle Eastern students in their overseas studies and helped create an Annual Urban Planning Award for University of Sharjah.