His Excellency Badr Jafar is the UAE’s Special Envoy of the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Business and Philanthropy, appointed by H.H. Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, to advance the UAE’s engagement with global business and philanthropic communities. In this role, Badr works to strengthen the private sector’s contribution to shared global priorities by fostering partnerships and opening new avenues for investment and innovation. The position reflects the UAE’s role as a hub for economic diplomacy, sustainable finance, and social progress, reflecting its commitment to cooperation, long-term vision, and shared responsibility.

A business executive and social entrepreneur from the UAE, Badr is the CEO of Crescent Enterprises, a diversified business with 57 subsidiaries, affiliates, and investments across 19 countries. Crescent Enterprises is a subsidiary of Crescent Group, a family-owned business shaping the MENA region’s economy for over 50 years. Badr also serves as President of Crescent Petroleum, the Middle East’s first independent and privately-owned oil and gas company, as well as Chairman of Pearl Petroleum, the largest natural gas producer in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and Chairman of Gulftainer, the world’s largest privately-owned container port operator.

He is a Board Member of the Dubai International Chamber and serves on the Advisory Committee of the UK-UAE Business Council. He also sits on the Advisory Committee for ENACT (Energy Action), a global initiative focused on shaping the future of sustainable energy. As Cop28 Special Representative for Business and Philanthropy, he chaired the inaugural COP28 Business and Philanthropy Climate Forum, which brought together leaders from across sectors to accelerate collaborative climate action, and for which he was awarded the Order of Zayed, the UAE’s highest civil decoration, by the President, H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nayhan.

Badr is deeply engaged in global non-profit and multilateral efforts spanning humanitarian aid, strategic philanthropy, corporate governance, entrepreneurship, education, and the arts. He serves with the King’s Trust International Committee, the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Humanitarian Financing, UNESCO’s International Commission on the Futures of Education, the Advisory Board of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, and is a signatory to The Giving Pledge.

In 2010, Badr founded the Pearl Initiative, a non-profit, private sector-led organisation promoting a corporate transparency and accountability across the Gulf Region, in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Partnerships. He serves on the Advisory Committee member for ENACT (‘Energy Action’), a global initiative shaping the future of sustainable energy, and sits on the Board of the Dubai International Chamber, and on the Advisory Committee of the UK-UAE Business Council.

He is a member of the Dean’s Circle supporting academic excellence and leadership in higher education and serves on the Boards of Trustees of Zayed University and the Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy. He is also a member of the International Council of the American University of Beirut and the Advisory

Council of Development and Outreach for the American University of Sharjah. Badr is the Founding Patron of the Centre for Strategic Philanthropy at the University of Cambridge and the Strategic Philanthropy Initiative at NYU Abu Dhabi, both dedicated to advancing the practice and impact of philanthropy in high-growth markets.

Badr holds a Master’s degree in Engineering from the University of Cambridge and a Business degree from the Cambridge Judge Business School.