Norberto Odebrecht (October 9, 1920 – July 19, 2014) was a Brazilian engineer, businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder of Odebrecht.

Early life

Odebrecht was born on October 9, 1920, in Recife, Brazil. He was the son of the pioneer and a grandson of, a German geodetical engineer and cartographer, who emigrated to Brazil in 1856. He studied at the Polytechnic School of Bahia.

Career

Odebrecht founded a construction company from which the Odebrecht Group in Salvador da Bahia was created in 1944. Today, the company has become an international conglomerate and employs more than 167,500 people in over 60 countries. In 1991, he passed the presidency of Odebrecht to his son Emílio Odebrecht, and remained as chairman. Norberto Odebrecht's "thoughts" have been compiled in three volumes distributed to all employees of the group.

Philanthropy

Odebrecht was the founder of the Brazilian Odebrecht Foundation (Portuguese: Fundação Odebrecht).

Death

Odebrecht died on 19 July 2014, aged 93, in Salvador, Bahia.