Omar Abdi Ali ( so, Cumar Cabdi Cali, ar, عمر عبدي علي) is a Somali

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

accountant An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certifi ...

financial consultant A financial adviser or financial advisor is a professional who provides financial services to clients based on their financial situation. In many countries, financial advisors must complete specific training and be registered with a regulatory ...

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

, and a leading specialist on

Islamic finance Islamic banking, Islamic finance ( ar, مصرفية إسلامية), or Sharia-compliant finance is banking or financing activity that complies with Sharia (Islamic law) and its practical application through the development of Islamic economics ...

. From 1986 to 1999, he was

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

Dar al-Maal al-Islami Trust Dar al-Maal al-Islami Trust ( ar, دار المال الإسلامي) ("The House of Islamic Money"), founded in Switzerland in 1981, is a leading Islamic financial institution with affiliates on four continents and assets under management of ov ...

(DMI Trust), a

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

ern financial and banking group, which under his management increased its assets from US$1.6 billion to US$4.0 billion. Omar is currently the

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

and founder of the multinational

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

corporation ''Integrated Property Investments Limited'' and its sister company ''Quadron Investments''.

Biography

Omar graduated in 1964 as a certified

from the Leeds College of Commerce in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. He returned to

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

, where he joined the Ministry of Finance and became a Deputy Accountant General. He also assumed the role of Director of Finance in the

African Development Bank Group The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) or (BAD) is a multilateral development finance institution headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and private companies i ...

, helping transform the pilot project into a multi-regional initiative.

Career

From 1974 to 1983, Omar would take up positions in the Gulf States and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

as a financial consultant. In 1983, he became CEO of the Islamic financial

institution Institutions are humanly devised structures of rules and norms that shape and constrain individual behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions a ...

the

DMI Trust Dar al-Maal al-Islami Trust ( ar, دار المال الإسلامي) ("The House of Islamic Money"), founded in Switzerland in 1981, is a leading Islamic financial institution with affiliates on four continents and assets under management of ov ...

based in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Under his tenure, DMI became a leading Islamic Financial Institution and its assets increased from US$1.6 billion to US$4 billion, with Omar managing a worldwide staff of 1,400 employees in three continents. He became Vice-President of the

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

i Faisal Private Bank, and established their most profitable branches in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, Switzerland and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 2009, Omar together with his business partner Suleiman A. Dualeh entered an agreement with ''Shelter Afrique'' that will see their corporation ''Integrated Property Investments Ltd'' take on an ambitious housing project worth US$624 million in

Dar es Salaam Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over s ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

known as the ''Bahari Beach satellite town''.Dar housing project gets $6.2m boost from Shelter Afrique
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Education

*Certified Accountant from the Leeds College of Commerce * Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ali, Omar A. Living people Ethnic Somali people Somalian businesspeople Year of birth missing (living people)