THE 500 MOST INFLUENTIAL MUSLIMS - CESD

Developmenther excellency sheikha mayssa bint hamad al thaniSheikha Mayssa is the chairperson of Reach Out To Asia, an NGO that is under the QatarFoundation, that contributes to the development of societies in Asia, including the Middle East,with specific emphasis on improving the quality of both primary and secondary education, inaddition to achieving some of the goals of UNESCO’s Education For All (EFA) and the UnitedNations Millennium Development goals (MDGs).SAUDI ARABIAbin laden, bakrBakr bin Laden, half-brother of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, is the chairman of the SaudiBinladin Group. The Binladin Group is a sizeable multinational construction company withoperations in Saudi Arabia and over 30 countries—making Bakr bin Laden an increasinglyinfluential power broker in Saudi business capital.obaid, thoraya ahmedObaid is the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund, the world’s largest multilateralfund for population assistance. Obaid is the first Saudi Arabian to head a UN agency andis also the chair of the principle inter-agency organization for coordinating management matterswithin the UN. She has underlined religion and culture as important aspects for the agency’sdevelopment work.SUDANibrahim, dr mohamed ‘mo’Mohamed Ibrahim—more commonly known as Mo Ibrahim—is a Sudanese-born entrepreneur,currently based in the UK. He became successful as a businessman in the telecommunicationsindustry, founding one of Africa’s biggest cellular phone companies, Celtel. He has recently cometo prominence for his idea of a Prize for Achievement in African Leadership—which awards therecipient a $5 million initial payment, plus $200,000 a year for life. The Prize was conceived asa way to curb corruption by African leaders, who often resort to corruption to obtain financialsecurity when they leave office, and to promote good governance. The prize is believed to be theworld’s largest, surpassing the $1.3 million Nobel Peace Prize.UNITED ARAB EMIRATESher royal highness princess haya bint al husseinHRH Princess Haya bint al Hussein of Jordan is married to H.H. Amir Sheikh Mohammed binRashid al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and the rulerof Dubai. Princess Haya is recognized for her efforts in developing initiatives in humanitarianism,sports, health, science, culture and business, as well as advancing the Millennium DevelopmentGoals toward the alleviation of hunger and poverty.al abbar, mohammed bin aliAl Abbar is a member of the Executive Board of the Government of Dubai and the director of theDepartment of Economic Development. Under his leadership Dubai has been one of the fastestgrowingeconomies in the world. He has been successful in increasing the financial regulationsrequiring transparency; making Dubai a more attractive place to invest and do business in. Heis one of the main assistants of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, VicePresident and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, and ruler of Dubai.YEMENbaobaid, mohammadBaobaid is a Muslim activist working on domestic violence at the University of Sana’a. He advocatesfor men to combat domestic violence and be part of the solution to the mistreatment of women inYemen. Baobaid is also a project coordinator of the Muslim Family Safety Project, an initiative tohelp victims of violence in the Muslim community in Ontario.142