This week, the death of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi brought due attention to the refugee crisis, and one billionaire wants to use his wealth to personally aid those displaced by war.
On Tuesday, Egyptian telecoms magnate Naguib Sawiris vowed via Twitter to purchase an island for refugees to use as a foundation for a fresh start.
Daily Mail reports Sawiris confirmed in a television interview he would contact the Greek and Italian governments to embark on his plan to help refugees traveling to Europe.
When interrogated on the attainability of his goal, Sawiris reportedly remarked,
Of course it's feasible. You have dozens of islands which are deserted and could accommodate hundreds of thousands of refugees.
The tycoon estimated the cost of one of these islands to land somewhere between $10 million and $100 million, and mentioned “infrastructure” would be a chief concern.
Sawiris discussed initial details of his proposal. He mentioned,
...temporary shelters to house the people, then you start employing the people to build housing, schools, universities, hospitals. And if things improve, whoever wants to go back [to their homeland] goes back.
The number of those drowned or gone missing trying to reach safer shores climbed above 2,500 this year, UNHCR reports. Sawiris, for one, would like to see refugees treated with respect and humanity.
He shared,
The way they are being treated now, they are being treated like cattle.
Citations: Egyptian billionaire offers to buy an ISLAND from Greece or Italy and provide jobs so fleeing migrants can 'build a new country' (Daily Mail), Egypt billionaire offers to buy island for migrants (The Times Of Israel)
