Prince Aga Khan, founder and president of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), died yesterday at the age of 88 in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon.

"With deep sadness, the Jamat [ndr: Ismaili community] has been informed that our beloved 49th hereditary imam, Mawlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini, passed away peacefully, in the grace of Almighty God, on February 4, 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal, surrounded by his family," reads the statement issued by the Imamat Ismaili, quoted by the international press.

Regarded as one of the richest people in the world, Aga Khan IV was born on December 13, 1936 in Switzerland, the son of Prince Aly Khan and Princess Tajuddawlah Aly Khan. He grew up in Kenya, attended Le Rosey School in Switzerland for nine years and then graduated from Harvard in the United States.

Among various corporate and humanitarian support around the world, Mozambique has also become known for being the largest shareholder in the century-old Hotel Polanasaid Radio Mozambique.

"Having world-class facilities for travelers can be a crucial component of what we call an 'enabling environment', a setting where other development initiatives can take root and flourish," said the Aga Khan in Maputo at the reopening of the Polana Hotel in 2010.

The successor to the leader of the Shiite Muslims was named in a will by the Aga Khan, and the document will be opened in the next few hours.