Anverali A. Rajpar

Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar was born in Masasi, Tanzania on 27th June 1938.

Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1962 having stood 4th out of about 1800 students and enrolled as an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales. He was later enrolled as a Fellow of the said Institute.

After qualification, Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar practiced as a Chartered Accountant in the field of audit, taxation, and consultancy up to 1971 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania whereafter he migrated to Karachi, Pakistan and ventured into Ship Agency business with the founding of General Shipping Agencies (Pvt) Ltd at Karachi, Pakistan.

In addition, Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar has been instrumental in founding the Tanzania’s first private insurance company, first private leasing company and first private commercial bank all of which companies he chaired.

Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar was one of the founder members of Pakistan Ship’s Agents Association and held the position of Hon. Secretary for 16 years and Chairman for 1 year.

Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar was appointed by the Federal Government of Pakistan to be a Board Member of Karachi Dock Labour Board from 1993 to 1996 and played a leading role in negotiating contracts with the port labour union as well as streamlining dock work practices.

With the liberalization of shipping industry in Tanzania, Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar founded General Shipping Agencies (T) Ltd in 1999 which he managed till 2003, when this company was merged with Seaforth Shipping Agencies Ltd to form Seaforth General Agencies Ltd. He was appointed as Managing Director of the said company, a position he still holds.

Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar has also been active in business, philanthropic and social services. He was Chairman of Dar es Salaam Merchants Chamber for many years, a Board Member of Tanzania Private Sector Foundation, Member of the Executive Committee of Tanzania National Business Council and one of the founders of Tanzania Shipping Agents Association and has remained its Council Member and Vice President.

Mohammed A. Rajpar

Mr. Mohammed A. Rajpar holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree (magna cum laude) from Bucknell University and a M. Phil (Economics & Politics) degree from Cambridge University.

Mr. Mohammed A. Rajpar has been conferred with the distinction of “Commander of the Order of the Crown” by the King of Belgium in recognition of his contributions over the past over two decades towards improving the economic, trade and cultural relations between Pakistan and Belgium.

Currently, Mr. Mohammed A. Rajpar is the Chairman of Pakistan Ship’s Agents Association since October 2024, Chairman of Oxford & Cambridge Society Karachi Educational Trust (OCSKET) since February 2022, Vice-Chairman of Pakistan National Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce (PNC-ICC) since October 2022, Advisory Board of National Institute of Maritime Affairs (NIMA) since July 2021, Chief Executive of Pakistan Belgium Luxembourg Business Forum (PBLBF) since March 2019, Chairman of the British Overseas School (BOS) since November 2016, Member, Board Member of Al-Murtaza School since 1998 and Honorary Secretary of Zainabia Educational Society since January 2003.

In addition, Mr. Mohammed A. Rajpar was a Member, Board of Trustees, Karachi Port Trust (KPT) from March, 2009 to December, 2013 and Trustee from July, 2022 to May, 2024, Board Member of Port Qasim Authority (PQA) from March 2006 to March 2014 and from January 2023 to September 2023, Board Member of Oil and Gas Development Company Ltd (OGDCL) from June 2012 to May 2014, Board Member of Board of Investment (BOI) from January, 2013 to May, 2015 and Board Member Karachi Dock Labour Board (KDLB) from December 1996 to December 2014 and Vice Chairman from December, 2014 to June, 2015, and Member Executive Committee of the Pakistan National Committee of the ICC from December 2013 to September 2022, Director of Pakistan German Business Forum (PGBF) from March 2014 to February 2019 and Advisor of Pakistan Belgium Luxembourg Business Forum (PBLBF) from March 2018 to March 2019, Chairman Advisory Board of Policy Research Institute of Market Economy (PRIME) from March 2022 to December 2024.

Mr. Mohammed A. Rajpar also served as Honorary Secretary of Pakistan Ship’s Agents Association from 1995 to 2004, as an Executive Committee Member for 2014-2015 and 2018-2019, and as Chairman for the terms 2006-2007, 2008-2009, 2010-2011, 2013-2014,2017-2018 and 2020-2021.

Mr. Mohammed A. Rajpar has served on the Gwadar Port Implementation Authority, Advisory Committee on Ship-owning, Planning Commission Task Force on Maritime Industry, Planning Commission Task Force on Trade Facilitation and Regional Connectivity and Prime Minister’s National Trade Corridor Improvement Program.

Ava A. Cowasjee

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee is a prominent personality of Pakistan’s shipping industry who completed her education from Covent of Jesus and Mary Karachi, Roedean School England, and Ecole Hotelier, Switzerland.

Thereafter Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee pursued Management training with the Forte Group England, and Intercontinental Hotel Karachi.

Subsequently Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee worked as Manager, Manpower Development at Intercontinental Hotel, Karachi, for four years before joining the Cowasjee family business.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee became Partner of the Cowasjee Group of Companies on 1st July 2000 having served for 29 years in various positions.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee is currently Director of HBL Asset Management Company since May 2016.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee has previously served as Director of Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) from 21st May 2014 to 20th May 2017.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee has been the Chairperson of Pakistan Ships Agents Association (PSAA) for the terms 2009-2010, 2012-2013 and 2015-2016 having already served PSAA for ten years as an Executive Committee Member.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee has been a Member on the Executive Committee of Pakistan International Freight Forwarders Association (PIFFA) for the terms 2011-2012 & 2012-2013.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee has attended a number of conferences on shipping locally and abroad and has participated in advanced courses offered by Pakistan Institute of Management Sciences.

Ms. Ava A. Cowasjee is the Vice Chair of SOS Children’s Village of Sindh for the last ten years; Member, Managing Committee, Hermann Gmeiner School since 2012; Senate and Syndicate Member of NED University of Engineering and Technology since 2013 and Trustee of Cowasjee Foundation since 2009.

Ali M. Rajpar

Mr. Ali M. Rajpar, Executive Director of the company, holds a MSc in Maritime and Air Transport Management from the Antwerp Management School (University of Antwerp) and MSc in International Business from SOAS, University of London (School of Finance and Management).

Ali previously served as the company’s Strategic Advisor. Between 2020 and 2022, leading special initiatives undertaken by the company which included chartering and operating privately chartered aircrafts to mobilise crew change operations for stranded seafarers while Pakistan’s airspace was restricted for commercial aviation during the Covid-19 pandemic. He was instrumental in further improving employee welfare by implementing enhanced systems for the well-being of the entire GSA family.

Prior to joining the family business, Ali was a Commercial Development Analyst. Between 2018 and 2020 at Excelerate Energy L.P., the pioneer and market leader in flexible floating LNG solutions, headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas. During his tenure, Ali supported Excelerate’s LNG chartering and trading activities in support of the company’s strategic efforts. Ali demonstrated a high level of commercial understanding combined with the level of dedication that produced results that the team he was a part of could depend on and developed into an important member of the commercial team.

Ali’s career in shipping commenced upon obtaining his bachelor’s degree (BSc) in Business and Management from Brunel University London in 2016. He initially joined GSA as Management Trainee as a part of the operations team till 2018, during which time he was integral in upgrading the company’s Quality Management System ISO certification from ‘9001:1994’ to ‘9001:2018’. Subsequently, Ali trained at Conti Lines in Antwerp, where he was mentored in the fundamentals of maritime transport as a part of the company’s cargo and chartering teams. Thereafter, he interned at Exmar Shipmanagement where he worked closely with the company’s procurement & logistics team to develop streamlined procedures for FSRU shipments’ customs clearances for operations in Pakistan.

Between April and October 2025, Ali was seconded to Seaforth General Agencies Ltd, where he gained mentorship on business practices in East Africa under the tutelage of his grandfather, Mr. Anverali M. Rajpar. During this period, Ali extended his family's existing and longstanding relationships through his interactions with key industry players as well as key figures in the regulatory environment.