JEDDAH, 24 April 2005 — High profile charity events that attract royalty, the rich and famous have long been regarded as an excellent way to raise substantial sums of money to help the less fortunate than ourselves. Back in the early 1990s, when Basil Al-Ghalayini was working in the UK, he was invited to a charity polo tournament, also attended by the Prince of Wales. He immediately recognized the fund-raising possibilities and began to think about organizing a similar event to raise funds for charities in a number of GCC and other countries in which his company, BMG Financial Advisors, operates.

With the “Sport of the Kings” as the medium, here was a golden opportunity for a meeting of royals from the UK and the GCC, as well as a mingling of businessmen and women from both sides in a social and philanthropic environment on a grand scale.

With the establishment of the BMG Foundation, Al-Ghalayini became involved in supervising the first charity GCC Polo Cup in 1996, which was held at the Army & Navy Club in Andover with Prince Charles playing for the Navy. To achieve this, Al-Ghalayini had teamed up with Saudi polo player Salahudine Massoud, who then introduced him to Prince Charles. In turn, Prince Charles introduced Al-Ghalayini to Charlie Sisted, the chief executive of the Guards Polo Club, the largest polo club in Europe in terms of membership and number of grounds.

Aiming higher than most would dare to, Al-Ghalayini then set himself the extremely challenging task of organizing the next charity GCC Polo Cup at the Guards Polo Club, situated in the natural beauty of Windsor Great Park, just west of London. Two teams were created, the Prince of Wales team and the GCC team. Anyone who has ever organized even the smallest of fund-raising events will have some idea of the enormity of what he took on.

One particular sponsor and player who has supported the GCC Polo Cup since its inception is Sheikh Mohammed Al-Hamrani. “He is a long-time player and member of the club and his group of companies has been our supporter and sponsor since the beginning. I give a lot of credit for our success to his assistance and sponsorship.”

The success of that event encouraged him to do it again the following year. Since then, he hasn’t looked back and the event is now is its successful 9th year, having raised and distributed hundreds of thousands of pounds during that time.

One of the main tasks of organizing any such event is to secure the necessary sponsorship and Al-Ghalayini speaks highly of the generosity has been received over the past years. He maintains that the event gives businesses an excellent opportunity not only to raise their profile, but also provides a means of promoting business relationships between the GCC and the UK. Introductions and business can be conducted in the more relaxed environment of a social and philanthropic event with the added attraction of having the opportunity to meet Prince Charles, who is captain of the opposing team, and his sons Prince William and Prince Harry, who have both inherited their father’s horsemanship and also play on the team. He adds: “A photograph with a member of the British royal family is also a rare opportunity and a momento to be treasured.”

Ghalayini confesses to the high stress levels involved in organizing a fund-raising event on such a grand scale but feels that it is very worthwhile from every point of view. “I believe in adding social awareness to the company profile. You can raise money in a very discrete way, low profile fashion, which is the way we have been taught in our faith, and I do that. Then there is another way, when you want to highlight and promote a charity and this is also something I encourage. For example, the Graham Layton Trust in Pakistan. This was set up by a British expatriate about 50 years ago to provide free treatment for blindness and eye disease to the poor. We had them as a recipient at one of our events and we gave them a check. But they ended up getting several other discrete private donations from people in the audience who heard me talking about their charity. So the charities also get a lot of publicity to help their causes. So I am a believer in doing good work and philanthropy with both discrete and high profile approaches.”

The GCC Polo Cup particularly supports the plight of disabled children and some of the charities who have benefited from it include the Friends of the Disabled Association of Lebanon, an organization that was founded by parents of mentally disabled children, and the Association of Disabled Children of Saudi Arabia. The Kidney Research Center of Saudi Arabia, and in UK the St. Luke’s Hospice and the Joseph Weld Hospice for whom Prince Charles is patron, have also been recipients of funds.

Prince Charles’ interest in horses stems from his childhood and he has used these recognized skills to great effect as a vehicle to raise money for his own highly regarded charity, The Prince’s Trust. The GCC Cup therefore also donates a portion of the funds to this trust. The prince has also a great affinity with the Middle East and particularly with Islam and Islamic culture, thereby creating a natural bond for a Saudi-British partnership in a high profile charity event to benefit both sides. Queen Elizabeth, also takes a keen interest in the tournament and over the years has attended several events herself.

This year’s event is scheduled for June 25 at what has become its home ground, the Guards Polo Club, and again under the patronage of the Prince of Wales. In memory of the late President Rafik Al-Hariri, the trophy will instead be called “The Al-Hariri Cup” and will be dedicated to him. He was an active member of several international charity organizations and his eldest son, Bahuddin Al-Hariri, will be the guest of honor.

Media and press coverage of the 2005 event will be extensive, beginning with weekly promotions in the Saudi newspapers. There will also be a documentary showing the full scale of the event to promote it and for businesses to send to their clients. “We are looking for different levels of sponsorship: Platinum £50,000; Gold £30,000 and Silver £15,000.

“We are looking for Saudi and Saudi-British joint venture sponsorships, as well as Kuwaiti, Egyptian, Emirates, Turkish and American,” Al-Ghalayini said.

No sooner has one year’s event finished than the planning for the next one is in the pipeline. “Once a date has been allocated when the Prince of Wales is free, then the soft marketing can begin,” says Al-Ghayalini.

“The Prince of Wales has never, ever let me down throughout these nine years. He sees it as a way to bridge relationships between the GCC countries and the UK. It is a bit like the diplomacy of ping-pong between China and the US: this is the diplomacy of polo. It brings the great and the good of the countries together over the event of a polo tournament.”

Al-Ghalayini is ambitious and has further plans: “Year after year, this is further cementing relations between the UK, the UK royal family and the business community of the GCC.” His ultimate goal is to host a charity GCC Polo Cup here in Jeddah, to invite the Prince of Wales team here and to return the hospitality on Saudi soil.

With a fund-raising event that is now an established date on the British summer social calendar, as well as one for the Arab and British media, it is a choice association for any GCC business. Furthermore, it is an exceptional opportunity to highlight the philanthropic awareness of their companies.