Citation
Ahmed, H.M.S. (2013), "Tribute to a colleague and a friend: in memory of Prof Yahia El-Bassiouni JEAS’ Editor", Journal of Economic and Administrative Sciences, Vol. 29 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEAS-09-2013-0032
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Tribute to a colleague and a friend: in memory of Prof Yahia El-Bassiouni JEAS’ Editor
Article Type: Obituary From: Journal of Economic and Administrative Sciences, Volume 29, Issue 2.
I have had the privilege and honor of learning from, mentored by, and working with Yahia for the last 15 years. There are many things that need to be said about him. I hope that some of my thoughts about Yahia will echo other colleagues’ and I apologize for the important things that I might leave out.
For me, and all those who knew him, Yahia was an inspiration: a mentor and a very loyal colleague and friend. He was a man with passion for life and for people. He had a great intellect and never stopped in his quest for knowledge as a statistician. He chaired the Department of Statistics at the College of Business & Economics – United Arab Emirates University for more than two decades during which he supported his colleagues and created a very successful and healthy research and teaching environment.
Another facet of Yahia's character was his enormous capacity to love. He clearly loved his family and enjoyed sharing stories of them with us. He was so proud of them all, being so happy to see his son finish his PhD followed by his daughter. His love touched all those around him and he treated one and all with the same courtesy and respect.
Yahia had been the editor-in-chief of JEAS for more than two decades. Yahia took the responsibility of being editor very seriously. To a great extent JEAS reflected his taste and judgment. It is fair to say that in his capacity as editor Yahia helped to shape the field of business and economics in the Middle East and beyond. He always worried about rejecting a manuscript that might have a value or the implications of rejecting a paper on a researcher. I still remember vividly the day Yahia called me into his office and asked me to be his co-editor. I offered my assistance at any level without being his co-editor because JEAS to me had been identified by him. Even though I knew that this job was “in addition to” and not “instead of,” I accepted just to learn something more from him, and I was right.
Yahia, you will be dearly missed. Thank you for your friendship, kindness, and mentorship. May your soul rest in peace.
Hassan Mohamed Selim Ahmed