Saif Durbar

A well-established presence in London’s business world, Saif Durbar has maintained a significant interest in African mining and infrastructure ventures since the mid-1990s. He is currently spearheading a major trans-African railway project that will run from a Sudanese port through the Central African Republic to Cameroon. In the process, Saif Durbar plans to “complete the vision of the Suez Canal” in providing a safe and reliable commercial linkup for many difficult-to-access regions of Africa.

Beginning his career at a gas station in London, Mr. Durbar engaged as a hairstylist until he saved enough money to form an entrepreneurial venture in the import-export sphere. In the early 1990s, he achieved success in the real estate sector through facilitating transactions on behalf of Saudi Arabian clients. Through this internationally focused engagement, he initially began exploring African infrastructure and transportation possibilities.

Mr. Durbar’s African business experience extends to building a major supply network of rough diamonds throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s. Saif Durbar pioneered a rigorous certification protocol that that encouraged the trade of legitimate diamonds and discouraged trade in conflict-promoting “blood diamonds.”