A legacy
His Excellency Saleh Ali Al-Turki founded Nesma in 1979 with a vision to build an innovative Saudi company that meets the demands of the rapidly growing Kingdom. He served as President and Chairman of Nesma until his appointment as Mayor of Jeddah in July 2018, under the leadership of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
His profound knowledge of the Kingdom, insight into the opportunities presented by the country’s development goals, and his determination to build a company that would be widely respected for its quality, reliability, and know-how helped place Nesma as a serious and leading player in diversifying the Saudi economy.
While he oversaw the growth of Nesma into the diversified company it is today, he has also, over the decades, served the Saudi business community and held trusted positions in social welfare and education. Notably, he served as the Chairman of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce, the Chairman of Al-Birr Society for Orphans, and the Chairman of Tarahom Society for prisoners' welfare.
In other business roles, Al-Turki was Chairman of Jeddah Holding Company and Saudi Foras Investment Company, as well as a Director of the Board for Arab Poultry Breeders Company (Ommat) and ReAya Holding. He also sat on the Coutts Middle East Advisory Board.
In the education field, he served a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Prince Muqrin in Medina and Dar Al-Hekma University in Jeddah. He also served on the Advisory Board of Effat University. Additionally, he was a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Business and Technology (UBT) and the Advisory Board of the Saudi Research Science Institute (SRSI) at King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST).
In 2010, he was appointed Honorary Consul of the Republic of Austria. In 2011, the Saudi Ministry of Social Affairs honored him as one of the most important supporters of social work. He is also a recipient of the King Salman Award for the Support of Young Entrepreneurs and the Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd Award for Service of Charitable Activities.
HE has a BA in Public Administration from the American University of Beirut and an MA in Public Administration from California State University.
