A Chat with David Solomon: Founder, BES; Founder of the first Global Impact Summit for the Financial Times; a Founding Steward of the World Indigenous Forum

This week, Stephen Ibaraki has an exclusive interview with David Solomon.

David Solomon is spearheading one of the most ambitious initiatives in African history, uniting a regenerative coalition to solve hunger and unlock access to natural resource wealth for indigenous communities. His vision is to create a lasting solution to hunger that not only provides millions of jobs but also builds a perpetual system to manage and steward the vast wealth of indigenous people for transformative socio-economic impact.

With over a decade of experience in economic justice and development across East Africa, Solomon has raised $3.4 billion for various economic projects. However, he chose to walk away from these funds when he couldn't find partners who aligned with the virtues and needs of the region's most vulnerable populations. Determined to create lasting change, he built Forums to bring together the right alliances for ethical development.

As such, Solomon became the founder of the first Global Impact Summit for the Financial Times, which focused on shifting Africa's narrative from aid dependence to sustainable development. As a Founding Steward of the World Indigenous Forum, he is working to unite indigenous leaders globally to accelerate nature-positive solutions. He was recognized as a Young Leader by the Milken Institute. His early career in investment banking includes roles in fixed income at Salomon Brothers and Citigroup from 1999 to 2004.

Born in London to a family with roots in Morocco and Egypt, David continues to advocate for innovative approaches to economic transformation across Africa. He is an active member of the Milken Institute's African Leaders Business Council and a key voice in global economic forums.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/solomon77/