Alvaro Sobrinho, a renowned Angolan businessman, was born in 1961 and he has spearheaded development in Africa through science as the chairman of Planet Earth Institute. Born to a family of family developers, Alvaro had a great opportunity to further his education abroad to Lisbon, Portugal where he undertook statistics and mathematics courses at the NOVA university. He attained great experience and skills that enabled him become the banker, businessman and philanthropist he is today.
He kicked of his career life as an insurer, but later moved to the banking sector. In 2000, he was appointed the director of Banco Espirito Santo in Lisbon. This opportunity was a great opening for him since he was given a chance to open a branch of the bank in Angola. As CEO of the bank in Angola, he made tremendous achievements and earned the bank quite a number of prestigious awards.
His philanthropic work has also led to his popularity. He has a firm belief of tecno scientific growth model for Africa and this has seen him participate in a number of charity works. It was of this vision that he co-founded Planet Earth Institute, an NGO that is focused on enhancing scientific advancements in Africa.
One of his major investments as a philanthropist is the distribution of high end study materials across the continent. He has also invested in the nationwide wireless internet network YooMee Africa. Planet Earth Instituted is dedicated in providing scientific independence to Africa. He aslo participates in several Africa focused charities.
Alvaro’s woks should be recognized in the broader context of African economics as well as his efforts to ensure that there is ample infrastructure, training, labor and investment in the continent. He has gone beyond limits to see to it that a high economic growth is achieved in Africa to match the likes of Asia and South America. His aim is to ensure that the growth occurs in an equitable manner so as all Africans can have a quality life equally.
According to Sobrinho, African scientific independence doesn’t mean that Africans should never collaborate with the western world anymore; but they should utilize them and acquire the right knowledge to achieve a brighter future. It will enable Africans to control and manage their resources effectively.
Another interesting wish for Alvaro is to create ample and suitable conditions for African growth and scientific knowledge and to keep off the continent from seeking foreign help.
Alvaro’s philanthropic work doesn’t end there; he also works with Africa Business Champions for science, a group focused on setting up over 10000 PhD scholarship in the next 10 years. He also wants to discourage ‘brain draining’, where you see Africans are trained locally but move abroad to work there. And he believes the challenge can be met.
Most of his projects are aimed to Making Africa attractive for studies and financial freedom. This is a great deal of investment in the future of Africa, in terms of labor and investment. He highly recognizes importance of education, and he says that academics ought to have confidence in their positions.