Afghan Biographies

Ahmadzai, Hashmat Ghani


Name Ahmadzai, Hashmat Ghani
Ethnic backgr. Pashtun
Date of birth 1960
Function/Grade Businessmen and self declared Kuchi Koochi Chief
History and Biodata

2. Previous Functions:
CEO and Founder of the Ghani Group LLC

3. Biodata:
Ahmadzai Hashmat Ghani

Hashmat Ghani Ahmadzai was born Oct 29, 1960 Logar Province in Afghanistan and studied in Afghanistan, Pakistan, France, New York, and Washington, DC. He earned his MBA in International Trade and Marketing and remains an active businessman in Afghanistan. He is the brother of Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, Chairman of the Institute for State Effectiveness and former Finance Minister of Afghanistan. Hashmat Ghani Ahmadzai owns land in the United States, Dubai, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.

 

Ahmadzai’s grandfather brought King Zahir Shah’s father, King Mohammed Nadir Shah, into power in the early 20th century. His father served King Zahir Shah in many ministerial roles, last holding the title of Minister of Transport from the late 1950s until the King was deposed in 1973. Following the overthrow of the King's government, Ahmadzai and his family joined the former King and royalists in exile as part of what came to be known as the Rome Group, which flourished as a political organization though it was not a formal political party. In this capacity, he oversees the Ahmadzai, one of the largest Pashtun tribes, a significant portion of which resides on the southeastern side of the Durand Line in Waziristan, which is semi-controlled by Pakistan. Ahmadzai has been a prominent leader assisting and securing the future of the Kuchi people in Afghanistan.

He became the Grand Council Chieftain of the Kuchis in 2002. Hashmat Ghani Ahmadzai, chief of the Grand Council of Kuchis, is among the wealthiest and most influential Kuchis, thanks to a large family inheritance based on land ownership as well as a successful transport company. He is also a vice president of an American security and reconstruction company. As chief of the Kuchi council, which represents the interests of largely settled Kuchi tribes, Ahmadzai deals with important Afghan politicians, including President Hamid Karzai. But he says ideas he has put forward to improve life for the poorest nomads, such as providing community centers and integrating them into settled societies, Ahmadzai advocated the establishment of an office for nomadic affairs within Karzai's administration. The office, according to Ahmadzai's vision, would help mediate land disputes and work to build trust among Kuchis and northern ethnic groups. Ghani belongs to the Ghilzai group of the Pashtuns. He is one of the wealthiest “Kuchis” and owns land in the USA (in Virginia and New York), in London, and Dubai.

 

The Ghani Group is a privately owned conglomerate company that operates subsidiaries dealing with security services to private and public clients, Import & Export, as well as Construction/Real Estate. Headquarters based in Kabul, Afghanistan which has a subsidiary that operate in Dubai, UAE.

He announced his candidacy for president of Afghanistan on 20131005 ahead of national elections in April 5, 2014 as one of 25 candidates, but dropped out.

Hashmat Ghanis son Sultan Ghani, listed a short SOSi internship in 2013 on his resume. Sultan Ghani now runs The Ghani Group, the family’s privately owned conglomerate with interests that include mining and military contracting. He apparently keeps in touch with old friends at SOSi. A photo uploaded to LinkedIn during the summer of 2019 shows him meeting with SOSi Vice President Helmick, and the account features praise for his interpersonal skills posted by another SOSi executive.(20210428)


Hashmat Ghani Ahmadzai, chief of the Grand Council of Kuchis, announced his support for the group in the presence of Taliban leader Khalil-ur-Rehman and religious scholar Mufti Mahmood Zakir. On social media, the pictures of the meeting have since gone viral.(20210821)

Former President Ashraf Ghani's brother Hashmat Ghani has dismissed reports of he is joining the Taliban, saying he has " accepted their rule" but "accepted not to join them", speaking exclusively to WION's Principal Diplomatic Correspondent Sidhant Sibal that there is a misconception. Ghani said: "I have accepted their rule. I have not accepted to join them. I have simply told them that in order to avoid bloodshed, I have accepted the rule which worse than everyone pulling the rug under us. I am staying here to safeguards my tribe,  the educated ones, and those in commercial sectors. I told them frankly, they're very good at bringing out security, they have proven it in the last few days but they're lacking cooperation of intellect, those that are working in civil service, and those that know how to run the country, those that know how to run the financial sector and the business community. I will be in the country, if they want to join a government that is acceptable to people, I would, I would not join them but I will try to bridge a gap between those, so the country doesn't fall or doesn't face a collapse or faces hunger or starvation. This is my exact statement." (20220823)


Ghani was married to Feriha Ghani and has three children: two boys (Sultan Zamarai Ghani (born 1992), Amel Aimal Ghani)  and a girl (Hannah Sofia Ghani, born in Virginia, USA).  Farrah Ghani died amid a lengthy battle with stage 4 breast cancer in February 2019.

Hashmat Ghani speaks Pashtu, Dari, Urdu and English.


More Background:


Sultan Zamarai Ghani was born on January 31, 1992, and is of Afghan Pashtun descent. His father Hashmat Ghani Ahmadzai. Sultan’s father oversees the Ahmadzai, one of the largest Pashtun tribes, a significant portion of which resides on the southeastern side of the Durand Line in Waziristan, which is semi-controlled by Pakistan.  

His family lived in exile during his youth unable to travel to Afghanistan until 2002.  His family lived in the suburbs of Northern Virginia . Ghani moved to Dubai, UAE  while still in his early teens in order to travel back and forth to Afghanistan. 

Sultan Ghani graduated secondary school from and went on to receive his bachelors in Business Administration with an emphasis on International business from Marymount University, a Catholic university with its main campus in Arlington, Virginia, USA. Marymount offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in a wide range of disciplines. 



Sultan Ghani is the nephew of Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai who is serving as the President of Afghanistan.

Sultan Ghani became President of the Ghani Group in January 2016.


He speaks English and Dari fluently.

 

Last Modified 2022-06-17
Established 2010-11-25