Charles Mbire
Quick Facts
Biography
Charles Magezi Mbire is a businessman, entrepreneur, and industrialist in Uganda. He was reported to be the wealthiest indigenous Ugandan, with an estimated net worth exceeding US$200 million as of January 2012.
Background
Mbire was born Charles Magezi in 1959 to Ponsiano Mbire and Thereza Mbire in Mparo, Kabale District, southwestern Uganda. He is the third-born in the family with three sisters, two of them older than him, and two younger brothers. He attended Kabale Primary School and Kitante Primary School for his elementary education. He studied at St. Mary's College Kisubi for his O-Level education. He then attended Namasagali College for his A-Level studies. He studied business and economics and graduated with the honors degree of Bachelor of Science, from Essex University in England. He went on to obtain a Master of Business Administration from Leicester University, also in the United Kingdom. His investments are in telecommunications, finance, energy, real estate, pharmaceuticals, agribusiness, and transportation.
Business interests
Mbire is part owner and member of the board of directors of the following Ugandan businesses:
- Afro Alpine Pharma Limited
- East Africa Fish Farming Limited
- Eskom Uganda Limited
- Invesco (Uganda) Limited
- MTN Communications Uganda Limited
- Polino Holdings Limited
- Sunco Investments Limited
- Bomi Holdings Limited
- Rift Valley Railways
- Chui Investments Limited - An investment company specializing in the construction, operations and ownership of small and medium-sized power stations in Uganda
- "Ugandan Entrepreneur Extraordinaire, Charles Mbire, Capitalist With A Human Face". Franklin.Ws. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
- Ainebyoona, Emmanuel (22 September 2014). "New RVR Trains To Boost Cargo Volumes, Says Company Official". Daily Monitor (Kampala). Retrieved 14 October 2014.
- Mugabe, David (7 December 2010). "National Grid To Get 200MW Boost". New Vision (Kampala). Retrieved 14 October 2014.
Other responsibilities
Mbire was appointed chairman of the Uganda Securities Exchange in 2010. He is also a member of the Presidential Investor Roundtable, an elite group of businesspeople who advise the President of Uganda on how to improve business competitiveness and business conditions in the country.
Net worth
In December 2008, it was estimated that Mbire's net worth exceeded US$65 million. In January 2012, his net worth was estimated to have increased to greater than US$200 million.