Business / I was born in Yemen & my father always said I have Arabic blood: Mukesh Ambani

Mumbai: Mr. Ambani, many may not know that you have a special connection with the Middle East. You were born in Yemen when your father worked there before returning to India. Tell us about this connection with the Middle East and how you see it in the context of your business.

Mukesh Ambani: Well, I think I was born in Yemen because my dad went to Yemen as a young Indian in Yemen, and he always says I have Arabian blood, that’s what we value I think you are doing it. The relationship between all Arab countries and India, which is centuries ago. I think there are many Indians in Qatar. There are many Qatari people, but there are about 700,000 Indians, each of whom is an Indian Qatari spokesperson. Also, I think I had the privilege of working with Sheikh Mosa in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Group in my own family, but my wife is a big fan of her achievements in sports and culture. My daughter is a big fan. Of all the foundations achieved in art. So, as a family, we appreciate what the Qatar Foundation and the Qatar royal family have actually achieved for the people of Qatar. We learned and inspired India and Qatar.

What do you think is the legacy of this pandemic from a global commerce perspective? Has it radically changed the way you do business?

Mukesh Ambani: I think Covid-19 is a humanitarian crisis once in 100 years. The world wasn’t prepared for it. The crisis has tested human resilience. The world is suffering. Ultimately, it is the human spirit, not the virus, that we win. Having seen unprecedented global solidarity, it has become unimaginable. No one could have imagined that the world would produce a vaccine within a year and vaccinate the whole world in a few years. So, I think humanity in both trade and commerce and the world economy has a lot to learn and more and more unthinkable things are possible. Taking the example of Qatar, we India will never forget Qatar’s friendship during this crisis. Qatar went far beyond the commerce of delivering medicines and supplies to India in time using all airliners. This shows that Qatar may be a small country, but it has a very big heart. I think trade is a way forward with purpose and compassion, to unite us all as humanity so that we can actually deal with global problems as one and help each other. I will. In my opinion, this is a turning point for the global economy and gives us the opportunity to work together to achieve more.

There are challenges, but given that optimism. What do you think is the biggest challenge for industry leaders at this point in the pandemic?

Mukesh Ambani: I think the first challenge is to make sure that the vaccination gap is closed. It is important that most developed countries are vaccinated by the end of the year. I think we India have taken many steps. By the end of the first quarter of this year, we expect it to be very successful, but it is the entire human race that needs to make sure that we are all together. .. The second challenge for all of us is to ensure that government-funded economies are regained by actually supporting the entire world economy, especially in developed countries that have not benefited from the stimulus. By returning and growing, we can not only regain developed countries, but also grow the whole world in a sustainable way. To that end, industry, government, and civil society must all function as a coalition of not only their own country, but the entire world economy.

The pandemic shows how important it is to break that digital divide. Do you see digital services that bridge the inequality gap and the technology for that? What is India’s own experience in trying to fill that gap? What are the important points there?

Mukesh Ambani: Well, I think the digital divide must be a bridge between nations and domestically. This is because connectivity and communication have become a fundamental need, and the basic rights of all human beings on the planet: food, clothing, shelter, and so on. I’ve never noticed this as seriously as I did during the corona pandemic. In India, the Prime Minister has also called Digital India. I have been given the privilege of deploying a 4G network to a digital services company called Jio. Fortunately, we were able to expand our network throughout India. 2018. When faced with the Corona crisis, I’ve always wondered what would happen without 4G networks across India. Yes, digital infrastructure has helped us work from home, vaccinate everyone, and ensure that children learn at home and learn online. This digital physical trend is a new common sense, and in the future, in the digital physical sense, I think it will also provide most health and educational services. So, in my opinion, integrating and strengthening this digital infrastructure, which was very useful in the Corona crisis, is a must for any economy.

You talked about how Jio helped fill that inequality gap. How else do you think your company can tackle the issue of inequality?

Mukesh Ambani: I would like to start by learning from Qatar again. His Highness Tamim bin Hamad Al Tani has used the wealth of hydrocarbons with the vision of having Qatar as an advanced society with a strong economic and social foundation. Investing in education and healthcare provides growth opportunities for the people of Qatar, a state-of-the-art infrastructure. I think we need to invest in education around the world, and in India, to give equal opportunities to everyone and health care. This crisis has taught us that we are urgently upgrading medical infrastructure around the world and we believe that this pandemic is not the last health crisis humanity has seen, so we are in the future. Make sure you are prepared for the crisis. It is important that we all work together, both within the industry and within government, to ensure equal opportunity and the opportunities that we really must strive to reduce inequality in all sections of the world.

The pandemic also highlighted the issue of corporate sustainability. Companies are now under increasing pressure to tackle sustainability. How do you see it as a business leader?

Mukesh Ambani: In my view, we have no option to actually adopt a sustainable business model to ensure that we embrace the clean energy model as a society and as a business. This is a prerequisite for our growth, and Reliance takes it seriously and transforms each business into sustainable, cyclical, recyclable and fully transparent standards of environment, society and governance. I think it’s a prerequisite for the survival of every business we move forward.

Does that probably mean dialing back some of your business right now? Is that something you need to think about?

Mukesh Ambani: Yes, that means transforming our business and integrating it with the future.