Jaffer Kapasi - OBE

Jaffer Kapasi is a British businessman born in the town of Masindi, Western Uganda, (East Africa) in 1950. Both his parents, born in India, migrated to East Africa in the 1930s and 1940s.

At the age of 22, Jaffer and his family were amongst the close to sixty thousand Ugandans of Asian origin ordered by the incumbent president Idi Amin to leave Uganda within 90 days.

The UK became the destination for nearly thirty thousand Ugandan Asian refugees who held a British passport. Jaffer, his parents and six siblings ended up in Leicester, a city in East Midlands, UK, where many other Ugandan refugees settled in late 1972.

Jaffer went on to become a successful accountant, held numerous directorships during his industrious career, including director of Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire & Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce, HM Leicestershire & Rutland Courts Board, Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, and Wrekin Housing Group & Trust Ltd, just to name a few.

In 1997, Jaffer Kapasi was awarded an OBE by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for his services to businesses in Leicestershire.

Jaffer Kapasi is a Dawoodi Bohra Muslim.

Kapasi in 2025

Born - January 1950

Spouse - Yasmin J Kapasi (m.1976)

Children - Rashida Kapasi & Muffaddal Kapais

Early Life and Education

Jaffer Kapasi's father was born in Gujarat State, West India in 1917, and migrated to Kenya in 1930, where he found employment in a relative's stationary shop, before being recruited shortly after by a couple of Indian shop owners from Uganda, where Jaffer's father moved and worked for 2 years.

Jaffer's father learned all about trading whilst employed by these successful Indian business owners. In his early twenties, he set up his own thriving village shops in Bugungu and Butiaba on the shores of Lake Albert, in the Western region of Uganda.

In 1948, Jaffer's father returned to India for a family visit and got married to Jaffer's mother in Mumbai. They both returned to Uganda where Jaffer and his 6 siblings were born.

Jaffer(left) standing next to his father in their Masindi shop (Nov 1971)

Jaffer's family prospered from the small businesses set up by his father, who, aside from owning several shops, was also able to build several properties in Masindi itself. The family lived in a large house and had staff to help with household chores. Jaffer was chauffeur driven to school every day.

Jaffer attended the Masindi Public School in 1955. After reaching O-Level (now GCSC), Jaffer moved to Kalabaga High School which had been build by Americans and run by the Education Department of Uganda. When Uganda gained independence in 1962, the curriculum changed and English became the first language taught, rather than Gujarati, and African geography and literature were now included in the curriculum.

Jaffer went to the UK to do his A levels and business studies from 1969 to 1971, then returned to Uganda.

Exile from Uganda

In 1972, Idi Amin, then president of Uganda, announced that he was expelling all Asians from Uganda, claiming they had to go because they were allegedly sabotaging and milking the economy of the country.

Amin gave Ugandan Asians only 90 days to wrap up their businesses and personal affairs before leaving their entire livelihoods behind to face an unknown life elsewhere in the world. Jaffer Kapasi and his family held British Passports and managed to secure UK visas to leave by the end of the 90 days deadline. Each family was only allowed to take roughly £55 with them.

On 3rd November 1972, Jaffer and his family landed on UK soil via Stansted Airport and were given shelter at Hobbs Barracks at Lingfield, in Surrey. Their accommodation consisted of one room for the entire family of 9 individuals. After one week, the family moved to an army barracks camp in Wales, where they sated for another 6 weeks before moving on again.

In January 1973, Jaffer and his family moved into a house on the outskirts of Leicester, trying to adapt to a completely new way of life, far from the affluent and easy going lifestyle they were used to in Uganda, where they had servants, chauffeur driven cars and flourishing businesses.

The family made ends meet the best they could as they settled into their new life. Jaffer's older brother Anwarali found employment within one week at Wilkinson Hardware, whilst the other siblings went to local schools and colleges. In 1974, the family opened a minimarket in Leicester and kept it going for 4 years. In 1980, Jaffer's father, 63, died, leaving Jaffer and his siblings in charge of the family's survival.

Jaffer went to Sheffield Hallam University which led him to become an Associate Financial Accountant in 1974. This marked the beginning of his very industrious and successful career, running his own accountancy business and serving in many other leading positions of trust and responsibility in the fields of civil society, academia, and law.

Deputy Lieutenant for Leicestershire

In 1999, Jaffer Kapasi was appointed for a three-year term as Deputy Lieutenant for Leicestershire to Her Majesty the Queen in 1999. He was the first Asian to be appointed to such an honourable position in Leicestershire. In that role, he deputised on behalf of the Lord Lieutenant, who was Sir Timothy Gerald Martin Brooks at the time.

Honorary Consul General of Uganda

Jaffer Kapasi was appointed as Honorary Consul General of Uganda to the Midlands in 2015 by His Excellency Yoweri Museveni, President of Uganda. Jaffer's mandate is to encourage Ugandan Asians who had been deported in 1972 to go back to Uganda to invest in businesses in their native countries.Thanks to his active commitment to foster bilateral trade relationships between the East Midlands and Uganda, Jaffer secured two visits by the President of Uganda, H.E. Yoweri Museveni to Leicester, the only President of Uganda to do so.

Career

Accountancy

In 1974, Jaffer Kapasi studied at Sheffield Polytechnic, which later became Shefield Hallam University and acquired accountancy qualification.

He started his career by becoming an accountant, then senior accountant in a company called Camber International Ltd in Leicester, manufacturing knitting machines that were exported the world over. He then moved to Remploy Ltd as Account Manager, and in 1986, set up his own accountancy practice in Leicester, J A Kapasi & Co. Ltd, of which he is still the Managing Director to date (2024).

Commerce and Business

Jaffer is a founder member and patron of LABA, the Leicestershire Asian Business Association which started in 1986.

Jaffer was appointed Director of Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire & Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce, and retired from this position in 2023, after serving the maximum term of 9 years. During his tenure, Mr Kapasi directed a Trade Mission to East Africa which created local contracts worth £6 million and met with political leaders including the Presidents of Uganda and Tanzania.

Between 2014 and 2023, Jaffer also held the position of Vice Chairman of the Leicestershire Businesses, Members Council, which provides an independent powerful voice for the views and concerns of its members at a local, regional and international level.

Housing

From 1992 to 2010, Jaffer was the Chairman of Asra Midlands Housing Association Ltd, which managed sheltered housing and care homes throughout the Midlands, providing a diverse selection of sheltered and care accommodation.

Extending his involvement in the housing sector, Jaffer became Group Board Member & Chair of Operations Committee Organisation at Asra Housing Group. In April, 2017 Asra Housing Association and Leicester Housing Association – both part of Asra Housing Group – amalgamated with Paragon Community Housing to create Paragon Asra Housing Limited.

Jaffer served as Landlord Director at the Independent Housing Ombudsman Service from1997 until 2001.

Jaffer was also Director & Chairman of Finance Committee of Wrekin Housing Group & Trust Ltd (2005–2014), one of largest social housing providers/housing associations in the West Midlands.

In 2004, Jaffer was appointed Director & Vice Chairman of HomeCome Ltd, a position he still holds today. HomeCome Ltd provides good quality homes for rent, leased from Leicester City Council and private sector landlords.

More recently, in 2021, Jaffer became president of the Croham Valley Residents' Association.

Judicial

In the judicial sector, Jaffer was invited to become a Home Secretary's appointee on the appointments panel organisation at the Leicestershire Police Authority (2002 to 2008). The Selection panel played a key role in the successful outcome of the process of selecting independent members for Leicestershire police authority.

Simultaneously, from 2002 to 2004, Jaffer was asked to join as a member, the Leicestershire Magistrates' Courts Committee, which had overall responsibility for the efficient and effective management of the magistrates' courts service in Leicestershire.

He subsequently became director of Her Majesty Leicestershire & Rutland Courts Board, a position he held from 2004 to 2007.

Community

Jaffer became a member of Leicestershire Multicultural Advisory Group in 2001, an independent grouping of key organisations and individuals, who believe in the importance of harmonious relations between the diverse communities of Leicester and Leicestershire. He terminated his membership in 2013.

From 1992 until 2002, Jaffer was appointed Non-Executive Director (Chair of Audit Committee) of Leicestershire & Rutland Healthcare Trust - NHS (which became Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust) providing services for people experiencing mental health issues and learning disabilities in the city of Leicester.

Jaffer is a founder member the Rotary Club of Leicester Novus, created in 2009. The club created the Peace Garden, raising funds to fight diseases and help disadvantaged people in the UK. Jaffer was a member until 2012. The club dissolved in June 2024 following the covid pandemic.

Jaffer is also a founder member of the Federation of Muslim Organisations in Leicestershire. The Federation is an umbrella organisation representing over 40 mosques and other community based organisations primarily based in Leicestershire.

Academia

From 1998 to 2004, Jaffer was a Member & Member of Audit Committee at The Council of University of Leicester.[25] Since 2009 to date, Jaffer has been a member of The Court of University of Leicester.

Steam Ship Robert Coryndon

In 1967, Jaffer's father Akberali Allibhai Kapasi, bought the SS Robert Coryndon, a passenger and cargo ferry, from East African Railways and Harbours Corporation (EAR&H). The ship had been stranded in Butiaba on the shores of Lake Albert since 1962 following a flood, but was otherwise in pristine condition.

Mr Kapasi Senior envisioned transforming the steam ship into a floating hotel. But his efforts to find

investors did not bear fruit and he sold the SS Robert Coryndon in 1971, shortly before he and his

family were force to flee to the UK following Idi Amin's harsh orders for Ugandan Asians to evacuate

Uganda.

Jaffer Kapasi on board his father's ferry, SS Robert Coryndon, moored in Butiaba, Lake Albert (1971)

Jaffer remembers travelling on the SS Robert Coryndon as a child, and recalls the opulence of her interior. The ship had been built to high specifications by John I. Thornycroft & Company, a shipbuilding firm based in Woolston, Southampton. She was manned by an English Captain and and most of the senior crew was English. The ship operated a ferry service from the thriving port of Butiaba, across Lake Albert to the Congo, transporting both people and cargo goods, especially cotton.

SS Robert Coryndon had a well furnished library on board and even Sir Winston Churchill said that she was "the best library afloat".

Ernest Hemingway, who had been forced to stop briefly in Butiaba after a plane crash whilst on safari, called the SS Robert Coryndon "magnificence on water".

Original H. Williamson Ltd clock on board the SS Robert Coryndon

Jaffer Kapasi is still in possession of the clock that once adorned the SS Robert Coryndon, one of the rare possessions his family took with them when they fled Uganda in 1972.

Mr Kapasi Senior envisioned transforming the steam ship into a floating hotel. But his efforts to find

investors did not bear fruit and he sold the SS Robert Coryndon in 1971, shortly before he and his

family were force to flee to the UK following Idi Amin's harsh orders for Ugandan Asians to evacuate

Uganda.

Honours and Awards

Civic Pride Award from Leicester City Council, for his work with LABA (1995)
Order of the British Empire awarded by Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II for services to businesses in Leicestershire (1997)
Freeman City of London Award from Livery of the Worshipful Company of Framework Knitters, (1999)
Independent Housing Ombudsman Service Award in recognition for voluntary services, presented by Rt Hon Clare Short, MP at House of Lords (2001)
Certificate of Achievement in recognition for outstanding Voluntary and Community Contribution to the City of Leicester, presented by Lord Mayor of Leicester Her Worshipful Cllr Mary Draycott (2005)
Special Olympics GB Leicester Award recognizing his role as non-executive Director (2009)
Lifetime Achievement Award bestowed by the South Asian Community, and presented by Jennifer Lady Gretton Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire (2010)
Leicester Business Diversity Award in recognition for raising funds towards the reinternment of King Richard III in Leicester, (2015)
Eurasian Golden Business Award for charity and Social Work, presented by Rt Hon Baroness Sandip Verma at House of Lords, Minister of International Development, UK (2016)
Lifetime Achievement Award for services to The Federation of Muslim Organisations comprised of over 100 affiliate members (2016)
Leicester Curry Award marking 50 years of Ugandan Asians in Leicester (2022)
GG2 Embrace Award, supported by National Trust - GG2 Leadership and Diversity Awards (2024).
UK-Uganda Diaspora Community Champion Award (2024)
Uganda-UK Asian Personality Award (2024)

Designated Awards

Ikhlash Khidmat Dawat (NKD) (1975)
Sheikh – Highest Honour, bestowed by H.H. Syedna Burhanuddin (1986)
Muklish Khidmat Dawat (MDK), bestowed by H.H. Syedna Burhanuddin(1995)
Nash Dawat Ilmiyah (NDI), bestowed by H.H. Syedna Saifuddin (2023)

TV Appearances

BBC Hardtalk 2002, 2016
BBC East Midlands
ITV
Sony TV India
Kenya TV
Egypt
Uganda
CNN

Book

Life story of Mr Jaffer Kapasi, OBE', Muslim Businessman in Leicestershire, and the Ugandan Expulsion (2012), edited and written by Prof Kiyotaka Sato (Research Centre for the History of Religious and Cultural Diversity, Meiji University, Tokyo). Published by RCHRCD, October 2012. ISBN 2185-6079

External Links

Leicester businessman made honorary Consul for Uganda 16 December 2015
GG2 Leadership & Diversity Award Winners 6 March 2024
Thank You, Your Majesty June 2022
SHIPU Hosts UK and Bohras Community Business Delegation 11 June 2024
Book Life Story of Mr Jaffer Kapasi, OBE: Muslim Businessman in Leicester, and the Ugandan Expulsion in 1972
Rebuilding Lives: the Ugandan Asians in Leicester story – Leicester Museums
Expelled in 1972, Indian-origin man now consul-general of Uganda in UK 3 January 2016
The Dawoodi Bohra community of South London - Jaffer Kapasi Public Relations Lead
The reception of Ugandan Asian refugees in Surrey 2022
Ugandan Asians: 50 years since their expulsion from Uganda 2022 31 August 2022
Jaffer Kapasi Interview by Gujarati Yatra March 2018
An entrepreneurial success February 2015
Special awards mark Uganda anniversary at the Leicester Curry Awards 2022
UK-Based Asian Investors to Inject $10 Million into Uganda's Key Sectors June 2024
The Uganda Healthcare Summit 2016: summary remarks by Hon Jaffer Kapasi, OBE April 2016
Select Committee on Standards and Privileges 2001
Leicester Businessman Appointed Honorary Consul General of Uganda December 2015
The Muslim News Awards for Excellence May 2016
BBC Hardtalk: 30 Years in Britain October 2002
Leaders reflect on success of Asian migrants 50 years after race law March 2018
Leicester's Dawoodi Bohras March 2018