‘THE COVID-19 CRISIS TAUGHT US THAT WHILST THE WORLD COULD SURVIVE WITH LESS PLANES, CARS AND TRAINS, IT COULDN’T SURVIVE WITHOUT THE PHONE!’
SAM DARWISH is no stranger to adversity. He spent his early childhood trying to survive the hardships brought on by the brutal civil war that gripped the West Asian country of Lebanon that he called home. Today, he is Chairman and CEO of IHS Towers, the largest telecommunications infrastructure company in Africa and one of the very few with global operations and aspirations.
With a current valuation of $7 billion, as per the company’s Q3 results last year, IHS Towers is one of only a handful of unicorns in Africa.
In October last year, Darwish marked another milestone by listing IHS Towers on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), a lifelong dream for the telecom entrepreneur, and a move you don’t often hear about in Africa.
“When I rang the NYSE bell on October 14 2021, it was a privilege. I don’t think anyone of similar background or path has done this before. We are talking about ringing the opening bell of the NYSE, the largest stock exchange on earth and the pulsating heart of the global capital markets,” exudes Darwish when we meet him for this recent interview via Zoom.
“We went through a lot of hardship, but what that period gave me was a lot of focus and determination. I became an avid reader, thanks to my father’s modest bookshelf, and I used to read his books regularly with a passion. There was nothing to do because you could not go out and play in the streets. The easiest thing for me, which was the most valuable thing for a kid to do, was to read.”
From Lebanon to Lagos, he is
