The King Abdulaziz Order of Merit is a medal awarded to citizens of Saudi Arabia and foreigners for meritorious service to Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabian media mogul Sheikh Waleed bin Ibrahim Al Ibrahim, Chairman of MBC Group, has received the King Abdulaziz Order of Merit for his success in the media and broadcasting world.
MBC was the first pan-Arab free-to-air satellite TV network when it was launched in 1991 by Al-Ibrahim as a single channel out of London. He was still in his twenties when he founded MBC. It aimed to provide a view of the world ‘through Arabian eyes’. Now, MBC is one of the biggest media broadcasting stations in the Arab world. It includes movie, TV show, and children channels such as MBC 2, MBC 3, MBC 4 and MBC Action. Al Ibrahim launched Al Arabiya in 2003, a free-to-air television news channel based in Dubai.
Al-Ibrahim is widely recognised for his contributions in the field of Arab media. He was among the top 20 prominent Gulf businessmen according to Amwal magazine in 2005. In 2007, he was chosen as the 27th most influential Arab among 100 Arab personalities by Arabian Business. He was named the ‘Media Man of the Year’ at the fourth MENA Cristal Awards held in Lebanon in 2008. In 2011, he was chosen among the top 50 figures in MENA’s media, marketing and advertising industry. Al Ibrahim was also named as the world’s 66th most influential Arab personality by Gulf News in 2012, while Arabian Business named him as the world’s 24th most influential Arab among 500 others in 2012. He also received other awards, including the “Knight” award from the Arab League in 2006 and the “Innovator of the Year” award from Arabian Business.
The King Abdulaziz Order of Merit is a medal awarded to citizens of Saudi Arabia and foreigners for meritorious service to Saudi Arabia. It is considered the highest civilian honour in the Kingdom.
