Egyptian businessman Hassan Abbas Helmy has donated US$42 million (LE250 million) to fund a scientific project initiated by Egyptian Nobel Laureate Ahmed Zewail.
Helmy, the founder of pharmaceutical company Pharco Corporation, told Al-Ahram news website on Monday that his donation was made out of a belief that Egypt is bound for a better future and a higher scientific status.
Helmy gave the donation directly to Zewail during their meeting on Sunday, according to the website, which said Zewail described it as "generous."
Zewail said he had agreed with Helmy to found the Alexandria Center for Pharmaceutical Research and Training, which he said will be part of Zewail's Science and Technology City, in a bid to tie scientific research to Egypt's medicinal industries.
He added that the city’s board of trustees will honor Helmy as a pioneer of Egypt’s science renaissance.
After winning the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1999, Zewail started promoting the establishment of a science and technology city to push forward scientific research in Egypt.
Nearly 300 feddans were allocated for the project during Hosni Mubarak's presidency, but work stalled, and it is unclear if the same plot of land will still be used.
