When you talk about the women who built the UAE’s modern business landscape from the inside, Raja Easa Al Gurg’s name is one that comes at the very top of that conversation. Not because she inherited a lot. But because she transformed one.
Her father, Sir Easa Saleh Al Gurg, built the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group (ESAG) from the ground up beginning in 1960. What Raja inherited was an opportunity, not a finished empire. Over 35 years in leadership. From board member in 1989, to Deputy Managing Director in 1994, to Managing Director, and finally to Chairperson in 2022 following her father’s passing. She turned that opportunity into one of the UAE’s most diversified and globally connected private conglomerates.
This profile covers her verified net worth, the business empire behind it, her career timeline, her awards, her philanthropy. We will also talk about what makes her one of the most consequential female business leaders in the Arab world.
| Full name | Raja Easa Al Gurg |
| Born | Dubai, UAE |
| Age | 68 (as of 2026) |
| Nationality | Emirati |
| Education | Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, Kuwait University (1977) |
| Current role | Group Managing Director and Chairperson, Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group |
| Estimated net worth | $1 billion+ (family business wealth; exact personal figure not publicly disclosed) |
| Forbes ranking | #95 Forbes Power Women 2025 |
| Children | 2 |
| Marital status | Married |
What Is Raja Easa Al Gurg’s Net Worth?
Raja Easa Al Gurg’s net worth is not officially disclosed. The Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group is a private family conglomerate, and no financial accounts are published publicly. However, credible estimates place her personal wealth in the range of $1 billion or above. This is based on her senior ownership stake and leadership role in ESAG.
Here is the verified data underpinning that estimate:
ESAG revenues: The Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group generated approximately $750–820 million in annual revenue as of 2024–2026. According to multiple business intelligence sources. The group operates across 27–30+ companies in retail, construction, industrial, real estate, logistics, and joint ventures.
Brand portfolio: ESAG is the UAE partner or exclusive distributor for over 370 international brands, including Siemens, Siemens Healthineers, 3M, British American Tobacco, Dunlop, Armitage Shanks, SieMatic, Smeg, Osram, AkzoNobel, and Unilever (selected categories). The breadth and durability of these distribution rights represent significant commercial value.
Real estate: Al Gurg Properties holds a significant commercial real estate portfolio in Dubai, including the Al Gurg Tower on Baniyas Road, Deira — the group’s headquarters, and other assets in established districts.
Forbes tracking: Forbes listed Raja Al Gurg’s net worth at approximately $558 million as of January 2021, and that was before she assumed the Chairperson role in 2022, which represents an expansion of her position and likely her stake. Given the group’s continued revenue growth since then (revenues rose from $750 million in 2024 to an estimated $813–820 million in 2026), a current figure of $1 billion or above is a reasonable estimate. One recent compilation of the richest Arab women placed her net worth at $1.2 billion, while another placed it at $2 billion. Reflecting the uncertainty inherent in estimating private family business wealth. We use $1 billion+ as the most conservative defensible figure.
Important note: Net worth figures for the leaders of private family businesses are inherently estimates. No official disclosure exists. Treat any specific figure, the ones in this article as well as an informed approximation, not a verified fact.
The Business Empire: Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group
To understand Raja Al Gurg’s wealth. You need to understand what ESAG actually is.
Founded in Dubai in 1960 by Sir Easa Saleh Al Gurg, who later served as UAE Ambassador to the United Kingdom and Ireland from 1991 to 2009. The group began as a trading company and grew across six decades into one of the UAE’s most diversified private conglomerates.
As of 2026, ESAG operates across the following sectors:
Retail and consumer goods: They team up with big brands to bring everyday things like soaps, home appliances, and electronics to stores in the UAE and Oman.
Building and construction: They supply the materials and products needed to put up big buildings — things like sinks, flooring, and kitchen setups from well-known brands.
Industrial and engineering: They run joint ventures with major global companies to deliver chemicals, healthcare tools, and other industrial products.
Real estate: They own and manage commercial and residential properties in Dubai.
Healthcare: They distribute medical tools and supplies to hospitals and clinics.
Technology: In 2024, they partnered with Amazon Web Services to step into the world of enterprise tech services.
Geographic reach: They mainly operate in the UAE and Oman but have trade ties across Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, Australia, and New Zealand.
Under Raja Al Gurg’s leadership, the group pushed into Saudi Arabia in 2026 with a new joint venture focused on household goods and consumer electronics, riding the wave of rising home consumption under Vision 2030.
Career Timeline: How She Built Her Position
Raja Easa Al Gurg’s career trajectory is one of the most instructive in the Gulf’s business history. A model of patient, structured leadership advancement over decades.
1977: Graduates from Kuwait University with a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature.
1978–1989: Serves as headmistress of Zabeel Secondary School for Girls in Dubai for eleven years — a formative period that gave her deep insight into education, people management, and institutional leadership before entering business.
1989: Joins the board of directors of Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group. Her transition from education to business was not simply a family appointment. She brought a decade of organisational leadership into the role.
1994: Advances to Deputy Managing Director, taking on operational responsibility for the group’s strategy and expansion.
2000s–2010s: Leads the group’s expansion into new international partnerships, new sectors, and broader geographic markets. During this period she also represents the UAE at international trade and commerce forums as part of the government’s official delegation.
2003: Co-leads — alongside Sheikha Lubna Al-Qasimi, a delegation of Dubai businesswomen to the US-Arab Economic Forum, establishing her profile as an international business ambassador.
2014: Ranked first by Forbes Middle East in its listing of the 200 Most Powerful Arab Women in Family Business. The first of multiple Forbes top-position rankings.
2019: Publishes her autobiography, Raja Al Gurg. An Autobiography, documenting her career journey and leadership philosophy.
2022: Appointed Chairperson of ESAG following the passing of her father, Sir Easa Saleh Al Gurg, at age 94. She continues as Group Managing Director simultaneously – a dual role that places her as the primary strategic and operational leader of the entire group.
2023: Publishes her second book, The Power of Authenticity: Three Principles of Leadership Success.
2025: Named among the Middle East’s Top 10 Most Powerful Businesswomen by Forbes Middle East. Ranked among the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women by Forbes (2023 and ongoing).
Awards and Recognition
The breadth of Raja Al Gurg’s recognition across international publications and institutions is itself a signal of the significance of her position.
- Forbes Middle East — Most Powerful Emirati Businesswoman (2017)
- Forbes Middle East — No. 1, 200 Most Powerful Arab Women in Family Business (2014)
- Forbes Middle East — No. 2, Most Powerful Businesswomen (2023)
- Forbes Middle East — Top 10 Most Powerful Businesswomen (Family Business category) (2025)
- Forbes — World’s 100 Most Powerful Women (2016, 2023)
- Gulf Business — 100 Most Powerful Arabs (2024)
- Arabian Business — 100 Most Inspiring Leaders in the Middle East (2023)
- Arab Power — 28th Most Powerful Arab (2018)
- Stevie Award for Women in Business (2011)
- World of Difference Award, International Alliance for Women (2009)
- Legion of Honour (Chevalier) — awarded by French President Emmanuel Macron
- Doctor of Literature (D.Litt.) — honorary doctorate, Amity University, India
- Honorary Doctorate — Queen’s University Belfast
- Forbes #95 Power Women (2025)
Board Memberships and Institutional Roles
Raja Al Gurg’s influence extends well beyond ESAG through an extensive portfolio of board and advisory positions:
- Chairperson, Al Jalila Foundation — UAE non-profit promoting medical research and education
- Chairperson, Easa Saleh Al Gurg Charity Foundation
- Board Member, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry
- Vice Chairperson, Dubai Healthcare City Authority Board
- Board Member, Dubai Academic Health Corporation (Dubai Health)
- First Emirati woman on the board of HSBC Bank Middle East Limited
- Advisory board member, Coutts Bank
- Finance and Investment Committee of Trustees, Oxford Centre of Islamic Studies
- Head of Auditing Committee, Federal Customs Authority
- Board of Governors, Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University
- Founder and President, Dubai Business Women Council (DBWC)
- Member, Dubai Women’s Association
- Member, Dubai Economic Council
- Member, Arab International Women’s Forum
The founding of the Dubai Business Women Council is perhaps her most enduring institutional legacy. An organisation that has directly enabled hundreds of UAE women to enter business ownership and leadership.
Philanthropy
Raja Al Gurg’s philanthropic work is structured primarily through the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Charity Foundation, which she chairs. The foundation supports community development, healthcare, and education initiatives across the UAE and internationally, with particular focus on South Asia and East Africa, regions with which her father built charitable connections over decades.
She has also committed publicly to female entrepreneurship through the DBWC, announcing an AED 200 million five-year programme supporting female-founded UAE startups, focused on sectors aligned with Dubai’s D33 growth agenda.
Her chairmanship of the Al Jalila Foundation. This promotes the UAE as a centre of excellence for medical research and education, reflecting an additional layer of philanthropic commitment to healthcare infrastructure.
What She Has Said About Leadership
In an interview with Gulf Business, when asked about the lessons she would share with younger generations, Raja Al Gurg said: “Dedication, transparency, time management, and keeping a good relationship with people, whether you intend to see them again or not. Because I believe that one day you will need them for something.”
On why she wrote her autobiography: “I have been through so many experiences and challenges in life, whether it was in the education sector, business, philanthropy, and medical, and I thought it would be a very good idea to pass all these experiences to the younger generation.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Raja Easa Al Gurg’s net worth?
Her exact net worth is not public, as the group is privately held. But given the group brings in around $750–820 million a year, runs 27–30+ companies, and she holds a senior ownership stake. Most estimates put her personal wealth at $1 billion or more. Forbes pegged her at $558 million in 2021, before she took over as Chairperson in 2022.
Q: What is the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group?
Founded in Dubai in 1960 by Sir Easa Saleh Al Gurg, ESAG is one of the UAE’s biggest and longest-standing private family groups. It runs 27–30+ companies across retail, construction, industrial, real estate, healthcare, and tech, pulling in roughly $750–820 million a year. It works with over 370 global brands, including Siemens, 3M, Dunlop, and Unilever.
Q: What is Raja Al Gurg’s role in ESAG?
She holds both the Managing Director and Chairperson roles. Aa dual position since 2022, when she was appointed Chairperson after her father passed away. She joined the group in 1989 and has led as Managing Director for several decades.
Q: What awards has Raja Al Gurg received?
Forbes named her among the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women in 2016 and 2023. Forbes Middle East called her the most powerful Emirati businesswoman in 2017. Gulf Business ranked her among the 100 Most Powerful Arabs in 2024. French President Emmanuel Macron awarded her the Legion of Honour. She also holds honorary doctorates from Queen’s University Belfast and Amity University.
Q: Is Raja Al Gurg the first Emirati woman on the HSBC board?
Yes. She is the first Emirati woman to sit on the board of HSBC Bank Middle East Limited. A landmark moment for Emirati women in global finance.
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Sources: Forbes.com Power Women 2025, Forbes Middle East Most Powerful Businesswomen 2023 and 2025, Gulf Business 100 Most Powerful Arabs 2024, Raja Al Gurg official website (dbwc.ae/founder), Wikipedia — Raja Al Gurg, Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group (algurg.com), RocketReach company profile, Global Thinkers Forum profile.
