President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa recently presented Andre Jordan, known by many as the ‘godfather’ of Portuguese real estate, with the Great Cross of the Order of Merit in Commerce, at a ceremony in the Presidential Palace in Belem on April 11th.

André Jordan was born in Poland, in 1933, and came to Portugal in 1971 to create Quinta do Lago, which is still, after 40 years, recognized as one of the most prestigious resort developments in the world.

In the late 80’s, after the sale of Quinta do Lago, André Jordan became Managing Director of Bovis Abroad in London, the foreign leisure property arm of the Bovis Group, with projects in Spain, Portugal and the Caribbean, including the famous La Manga Club in southern Spain.

In 1991 he created a new project in the Sintra hills, named Belas Clube de Campo, which has become an established and successful community that has recently launched its new phase. Comprising 465 hectares, it is 20 minutes from the center of Lisbon.

At the end of 1995, the André Jordan Group acquired Lusotur, SA, the owner of Vilamoura in the Algarve, today the largest leisure and residential complex in Europe which comprises a 1000 berth marina, 5 world renowned championship golf courses, a casino, several 5-star hotels and approximately 60 000 beds. This company was sold to Spanish investors in 2006.

Andre and his companies joined the Chamber in 1986 and over the years he has made a very valuable contribution to our business environment.  We would like to congratulate Andre on this magnificent achievement.