أجندة المؤتمر

Ahmed Ezz, Founder and President, Ezz Industries

Ahmed Ezz is the founder and president of Ezz Industries, an industrial conglomerate that owns several companies, the largest of which is Ezz Steel.

Mr. Ezz was born in Cairo in 1959. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Cairo University. He began his professional career in the early 1980s, trading in steel and construction materials. In 1984, he founded an international trading company based in Geneva specialised in countertrade, followed by Al-Ezz Shipping Line, in 1987.

He made his shift towards industry by establishing Gemma, a porcelain company, in 1988. In 1991, he founded Ezz Steel. Over 35 years, he has led Ezz Steel to become the largest steel producer in the Arab World and Africa, the first ever private-sector company to be elevated to such a status. Ezz Steel is also the largest industrial group in Egypt, employing around 10 thousand Egyptians, with a production capacity of 7 million tons of finished steel, and an annual turnover of circa $4 billion.

In 2023, Mr. Ezz steered Ezz Steel to become Egypt’s largest industrial exporter on record, with exports reaching 2.4 million tons with a value of $1.6 billion.

Ahmed Ezz’s achievements in the steel industry have been recognized, both regionally and internationally. In 2008, he was elected as the first Chairman of ‘The Arab Iron & Steel Union’ to come from the private sector – a post he was elected to again in 2025. In 2010, he was awarded the Willy Korf/Ken Iverson Steel Vision Award for making the ‘greatest contribution to the development of a local steel industry, turning it into a global player’. In 2017, upon recommendations from fellow steel producers in the Arab World, Mr. Ezz was named ‘The Arab Iron & Steel Man of the Year’.

Mr. Ezz also served as deputy chairman of the Federation of Egyptian Industries between 1996 and 2000. He was also the founding chairman of the Egyptian Italian Business Council. He was elected as member of the Egyptian Parliament in 2000, 2005, and 2010 where he chaired the Budget and Planning Committee for nearly 11 years.

Abdulqader Al-Mubarak is the Chief Executive Officer of Hadeed, the leading steel producer in the region. Appointed in June 2024, he assumed leadership at a pivotal stage in the company’s transformation journey, with over 25 years of accumulated experience across diverse segments of the steel manufacturing and trading sectors.

His career spans a broad spectrum of leadership roles ranging from marketing, sales, and logistics to full enterprise management, including key positions at Solb Steel and Sulb Company. He later served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Al Rajhi Steel before being appointed as the company’s Chief Executive Officer, where he led major strategic and operational transformations.

In addition to his role at Hadeed, Al-Mubarak serves as Chairman of Takamul and is a Board Member of AMTPJ. He also holds the position of Vice Chairman of the Arab Iron and Steel Union, underscoring his broader influence in regional industrial collaboration and policy development.

Chairman of the National Committee for Steel Industry – KSA and a member of the Raw Materials Unit, he currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Arab Refractories Factory Company since 2015. Prior to that, he held the position of General Manager of the company from 2013 to 2015, and earlier served as Head of the Development and Public Relations Department from 2011 to 2013. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the Business School at Anglia University in England. He has also completed several technical and managerial training courses in Europe and the Gulf countries. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Arab Refractories Factory Company and also serves as its Managing Director.

Edward James is a well-known and respected thought leader in MENA affairs. Ed has been with MEED for more than 20 years, working as a researcher, consultant, and content director. Until September 2008 he was MEED’s Gulf Bureau Chief, after which he moved over to head up the consulting arm of the business.

From 2015-2021 he was responsible for content and research at MEED Projects, the region’s leading projects tracking service. Today he heads up all content and research produced by the MEED group. His specific areas of expertise are construction, hydrocarbons, power and water, and the petrochemical market, and is considered one of the world’s foremost experts on the MENA projects market.

He is a regular guest commentator on Middle East on radio and television and is a regular speaker at events in the region. He has an honours degree in Arabic and Middle East Politics.