Most of us have a passion for something or the other in life. But what differentiates leaders from the rest is their zeal to follow their passion despite all hardships. Such a leader is Rejesh Satiija, who currently serves as the Group Chairman of the Sun and Sand Group of Companies, with offices in London as well as Dubai. But his true identity, fortunately, goes far beyond.
Born in a small village near Ambala, India, he completed his primary education in Haryana, where his mother taught. Rejesh describes himself as being an inherently calm and mature child; he spent more time with the teachers in school than with the students his age.
“God has given me a lot of opportunities in Africa. Africa is full of resources, 15–16 times more than the combined world economy. But they have no infrastructure to utilize them. Something must be done.”— Rejesh Satiija
When he passed school, upon his father's insistence, Rejesh took up engineering so he could secure a good government job. But fate had its own will. He graduated in 1986, and in 1989 left for Dubai to set up a business there. Surprisingly, even after over 30 years of having lived in Dubai, he doesn't have an affinity for it. “I have a house here, an office, bank accounts and family. But my soul is in Africa,” he says.
When Rejesh first travelled to Africa in 1990, he knew nobody there. “I had no connections, there was no communication and no money.” All he had was the $1 his father had given him before he left India. “That dollar turned me into a billionaire.” But it didn't come easy. Rejesh has seen his share of hardships. He mentions how once he went without food for 21 days and had to be hospitalized. “Everyone goes through hardship,” says Rejesh, who has now built an empire and quite the legacy in Africa.
It all started when the Indian government banned trade and import in the early 1990s. The possibility arose to import teakwood from Nigeria. Within a year Rejesh became the largest exporter of teak, further expanding his exports into utensils, charcoal, textiles and electrical goods. He bought scrap and converted it into auto-parts.
Eventually, his work grew from trading to manufacturing, and he began to export to Japan. In fact, he was the first in all of Africa to be listed on the London Metal Exchange, and remains the only one to do so till date. He exported to brands like Toyota, Rolls Royce and Honda, becoming so successful that the President sent a special team to his factory to see the manufacture of alloys to be sent to Japan. He became the recipient of two Presidential awards and continued to export until 2016, after which he sold the plant.
Despite being so successful in business, Rejesh's goal has never been to make money. It has always been to help the African people. He describes how once he was held at gunpoint by robbers. Instead of becoming terrified or angry, he brought them chicken and beer from the kitchen and asked them to relax while he collected all his money and belongings for them from his room. “It's the mindset of kindness that changes people. Those same robbers became my good friends and protected my factory in the night.”
He owned a gold mine in Ghana but couldn't bear to see children on the same land sleeping without clothes. “God has given me a lot of opportunities in Africa. Africa is full of resources, 15–16 times more than the combined world economy. But they have no infrastructure to utilize them. The people here are suffering.” Rejesh has dedicated his entire life to Africa.
“Africa is in my blood, I cannot go back to India.” Every day he spends his own money to raise funds for the poor, without getting anything in return. He does this out of feelings of pure love, passion, and belonging to his motherland, to his Africa. One of his intentions is to build machines that will condense water from the humid air to provide clean drinking water to civilians. He built a company called Africans for Africa, to administer healthcare and telemedicine. He also wants to make sanitary napkins that will prevent infections and visits to the doctors.
When asked about his personal life, Rejesh says he believes in leading a balanced lifestyle. He is very spiritual and practices meditation and reiki, but is also an astute businessman. He loves spending time with family and friends, and also does yoga to keep fit. He stays with his wife, Renu, in Dubai, while his two children, Garima and Atul, are pursuing their Masters degrees in the UK. He is proud of them being self-sufficient, economically, as well as mentally and spiritually.
His long-term goal is to help ease poverty in all 54 countries in Africa. For this, he wishes to involve Presidential leaders and work as one committed force for the betterment of continental Africa. “Dynasties and countries come and go. I believe in one Africa.”
He has a message for non-Africans who want to do business in Africa: “Don't come with the mindset of commercialization. Think about giving, rather than taking. Go with your heart and see the results. Opportunities will automatically present themselves.” On a parting note, Rejesh imparts a lesson to remember: “Destiny is your height and karma your body — you can't change your height, but you can change your weight by working hard.”