As Australia hesitates in its response to the worsening refugee crisis, an Egyptian billionaire continues to develop his plan to buy an island for those fleeing from war torn countries.
Naguib Sawiris said “there is no limit” on what he is willing to spend to buy an Island from Italy or Greece, where the rapid arrival of refugees has pushed some regions to breaking point.
The media mogul insists there are dozens of empty islands off of Greece and Italy that could handle 100,000 to 200,000 people. He’s even come up with the name ‘Aylan island’- after the young Syrian boy found dead on Turkish shores.
“It’s a very simple solution” Sawiris told CNN. “They sell the island to me and I’ll make a temporary shelter for these people. I’ll make a small port or marina for the boats to land there. I’ll employ the people to build their own homes, their school, a hospital, a university and a hotel” he said.
At this stage, the chairman of Orascom Telecom has heard no response from Greek or Italian officials regarding the proposal. He does however have an official hashtag, #aylanISLAND, and is accepting proposals via email.
With a networth of 3.8 billion, Sawiris is the third richest man in Egypt and also the founder of a political party.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has been under increasing pressure to increase this year’s humanitarian intake of 13,750 people, but has put off further decision making while Australia consults with the United Nations .