Prince Rahim Al-Hussaini Aga Khan V. Who is he?
50th hereditary Imam of the Shia Imami Nizari Ismaili Muslims
Prince Rahim Al-Hussaini Aga Khan V,53, is the official successor of Aga Khan IV who passed on Tuesday. He will be the 50th hereditary Imam of the Shia Imami Nizari Ismaili Muslims.
He was born on October 12, 1971 in Geneva, Switzerland and is the eldest son of Aga Khan IV and Princess Salimah. His education was mainly in the United States. He attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts and later on graduated from Brown University in 1995 where he had studied Bachelor of Arts majoring in Comparative Literature. Prince Rahim also undertook studies in management and administration at IESE Business School in Barcelona, Spain, graduating in 2006.
Prince Rahimi established the Aga Khan Brown Workshop series at the Watson Institute, in 2010. This was to promote knowledge, understanding and informed discussion about the Middle East, Islam and Muslim societies through research, teaching, and public engagement. His aim was to foster dialogue and collaboration among the scholars and broader community on issues related to these regions and even cultures.
He has been actively involved in matters relating to governance of the Aga Khan Development Network where he is currently chairing the AKDN Environment and Climate Committee. He also co-chairs the AKDN’s Budget Review Committees. He also sits on the board or Executive Committee for several of the AKDN’s agencies and affiliated structures. These are: Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, the Aga Khan University Foundation, the Aga Khan Foundation, the Aga Khan Development Network Foundation, the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance and the Aga Khan Trust for Culture.
Prince Rahimi married Kendra Irene Spears, an American former fashion model, on 31st August 2013. They divorced in February 2022. They have two children together: Prince Irfan who was born on 11 April 2015 and Prince Sinan who was born on 2 January 2017.
Prince Rahimi has a number of titles bestowed on him. As a descendant of Shah Fath Ali Shah of the Persian Qajar Dynasty, he is automatically a Prince. The title Aga Khan is also hereditary: it means lord and master.
Following the death of his father, Prince Karim Al-Husseini Aga Khan (Aga Khan IV) at the age of 88 in Lisbon,Portugal, Prince Rahimi takes up the title of Imam. He is the 50th hereditary Imam of approximately 15 million the Shia Ismaili Muslims across the world, in accordance with historical tradition. Therefore, he is expected to continue building upon the legacy of his late father.
Prince Rahimi’s vision and plans as Imam include community development where he will focus on improving the quality of life for Ismaili Muslims and the larger communities where they live. This includes education, healthcare, housing, economic development and so on.
He will also likely place strong emphasis on protecting and caring for the environment, climate action and sustainable development, given his role in the Environment and Climate Committee within the Aga Khan Development Network.
Prince Rahimi is also committed to promoting pluralism and fostering and encouraging mutual understanding and respect among different cultures and religions globally. He will also continue with the humanitarian efforts which include disaster relief, addressing food security issues, poverty eradication and so on.
He will also focus on the economic development aspect which will help in creating economic opportunities and improving livelihoods through entrepreneurship, upskilling, enterprise development and so on. While building on the principles of compassion, service and social justice, his vision is to create a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable world.
His net worth is estimated to be 16 billion USD (KSh 2.064 Trillion). The family has interests in banking,media,insurance,agro-processing and manufacturing) in Africa,Europe and Asia. In Kenya,teh Aga Khan empire includes; Nation Media Group,Jubilee Insurance and Aga Khan Hospital.
