Manu Chandaria

Chandaria's father, an Indian merchant from Saurashtra, Gujarat, ==Education==

Chandaria attended various schools in Nairobi and Mombasa in Kenya from where he proceeded to India for his undergraduate studies. He graduated from Jamnagar India University, Bombay in 1949 with a Bachelor of Science from whence he proceeded to Oklahoma in the US. He graduated in 1950 with a bachelor in engineering and continued with his Master's, which he obtained in 1951 from the University of Oklahoma. It was from here he returned to Kenya to find a prospering family enterprise and thus a platform where he would apply his swift business acumen to wrest a multinational conglomerate from the provisional shop that had once been. ==Business==

Shortly before Chandaria and his brother's return to Kenya, their family had amassed substantial holdings that made it possible for their entry into the lucrative steel and aluminium industry. With the onset of the 1950s and 60s came the expansion of Comcraft to other countries such as Ethiopia, Nigeria, Congo, India, Zambia and elsewhere with Chandaria being charged with business affairs in Uganda, and Congo. He is today a senior member of Comcraft Group, Chairman of Bank of India Advisory Committee in Nairobi among others. ==Philanthropy==

Chandaria is a committed Jain, and in fulfilment of the principles of Jainism his family set up the Chandaria Foundation to further this belief. As Comcraft operates in more than 11 African countries, the Chandaria family has set up charitable trusts in each country to assist in their philanthropic exploits. As the chairman of the Chandaria Foundation he is at the forefront of the charitable work of the family. He is the benefactor of numerous schools and clinics in Kenya and is or has been with involved with more than 25 organisations. ==Peace Maker==

Chandaria is a member of the Global Leadership Council and the patron and chairman of the Global Peace Foundation in Africa. He has spoken in all Global Peace Festival Conventions since 2010 and played a very crucial role in Kenya's hosting of the Global Peace Convention 2010 which was patronised and officially opened by the 3rd President of the Republic of Kenya Hon. Mwai Kibaki. In 2013, the Global Peace Foundation in Kenya under his chairmanship was nominated for the UN Person of the Year Award for its role in empowering the youth through entrepreneurship and a culture of service. On 7 December 2013, Dr. Chandaria addressed the Global Peace Convention 2013 held at the Shangrilla Hotel in Kuala Lumpur alongside Dr. Hyun Jin Moon who blamed religious fanatics for inter-faith conflicts. ==Personal life==

Chandaria is married to Aruna with whom he has two children: daughter Priti and son Neal, who works in the family business, and three grandchildren, one of whom is Ayushi. He lives in the Muthaiga neighborhood of Nairobi, Kenya. ==See also==