Badr Jafar Receives Spear’s Impact Award, First Arab World Honouree

The UAE's Special Envoy for Business and Philanthropy has been recognised in London for two decades of work transforming giving across the region into a strategic, data driven and globally connected force.

In a ceremony at the close of the Spear’s Awards in London, Badr Jafar received the 2026 Spear’s Impact Award, becoming the first recipient from the Arab world to be honoured with this distinction. The award is presented annually to an individual whose work has created lasting impact beyond their own professional field, and previous recipients include Sir Richard Branson, Dame Stephanie Shirley and James Reed.

The recognition reflects Jafar’s sustained influence over twenty years in reimagining philanthropy as an instrument of rigorous, strategic intent. Speaking at the ceremony, he articulated a vision of the UAE as an emerging hub for what he termed ‘strategic philanthropy’, where the traditional generosity embedded in the culture is now paired with infrastructure, data and partnerships that amplify its reach and effect. “Philanthropy is capital,” he said. “It deserves the rigour we apply to every other kind: evidence, patience, and partners.”

The scale of philanthropic engagement across the UAE speaks to this transformation. In the past three years alone, Ramadan campaigns across the emirates have raised more than AED11 billion to support initiatives spanning food security, healthcare, education and the care of orphans. This represents not merely the volume of giving, but its increasingly structured approach to creating measurable change.

Jafar’s work has taken several concrete forms. He helped establish the Pearl Initiative with the UN Office for Partnerships in 2010 to promote transparency and governance across the region, and founded the Centre for Strategic Philanthropy at the University of Cambridge in 2020, followed by a similar initiative at NYU Abu Dhabi in 2021. HasanaH, a digital giving platform he launched, now connects vetted projects across more than 100 countries. His book, The Business of Philanthropy, published by HarperCollins in 2024 and drawing on conversations with more than fifty philanthropic and business leaders across five continents, directs all royalties to the International Rescue Committee for children affected by conflict.

Since 2024, Jafar has served as 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. In this role, he mobilises business and philanthropic engagement behind the country’s development and diplomatic priorities, working across three interconnected fronts: deepening cooperation between government, business and philanthropy domestically; engaging the private sector in the UAE’s priority partner countries; and building relationships with the global business leaders and philanthropists who shape international agendas. His work has taken him to more than twenty countries across five continents, convening leaders around collaborative possibilities.

What it means for Abu Dhabi

The award recognises Abu Dhabi’s growing prominence in global philanthropy and its leadership in reshaping how giving is approached across the Arab world. By establishing centres of learning and platforms for strategic giving, the UAE is positioning itself as a thought leader in an increasingly important field, where capital, governance and social impact converge. This elevation of Abu Dhabi’s role on the world stage reinforces the emirate’s identity as a place where tradition and modernity, generosity and rigour, work in concert.

For the broader community, Jafar’s work demonstrates how the UAE’s philanthropic infrastructure serves not only local needs but global ones. The partnerships he has built and the platforms he has created mean that giving from the UAE reaches further and touches more lives, from food security initiatives to education and healthcare. As the Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to shape the UAE’s position on the global stage, figures like Jafar embody the country’s commitment to using its resources and influence to address challenges that transcend borders.

Source: WAM