Seven Years Running, Dangote Still Richest Man In Africa
President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has again been named the richest man in Africa by Forbes, a position he has occupied for the seventh time in a row.
Alhaji Aliko Dangote Dangote clinched the position with a networth of $12.2 billion, an increase of $100 million a year ago. Bill Gates maintained his position as the richest person in the world with a net worth of $86 billion, while Warren Buffet and Jeff Bezos were second and third with a networth of $75.6 billion and $72.8 billion respectively.
Forbes said: “Dangote is looking beyond cement –his most valuable asset – and has been investing in a fertiliser production company and a large oil refinery. Dangote Fertiliser is expected to start operations in the second quarter this year.” It would be recalled that Dangote was also recently the only African selected among Bloomberg’s world 50 best persons in the year 2017.
While names of notable Nigerians were dropped from the billionaires lists, Globacom Chairman, Mike Adenuga, with a net worth of $5.3 billion was adjudged the 5th richest man in Africa and Folorunsho Alakija, also a Nigerian, whose estimated $1.6 billion fortune lies in oil exploration firm, was adjudged as the 15th richest person in Africa. Number two on the list of African richest people is diamond mining heir, Nicky Oppenheimer, of South Africa, with a net worth of $7.7 billion, up $700 million from last year.
Oppenheimer is one of eight South Africans on the list, making it the African country with the most billionaires. Nigeria has just three. Last year, South Africa and Egypt tied with six billionaires each. Boosting the South African ranks this year: newcomer, Michiel Le Roux, the founder and former chairman of Johannesburg-listed Capitec Bank Holdings, whose stock has climbed more than 50 per cent in the past year, making Le Roux a new billionaire worth $1.2 billion.
South African mining tycoon, Desmond Sacco, chairman of listed Assore Group, returned to the list following a stock price surge of some 60 percent in the past 12 months. Sacco last appeared as a billionaire on the Africa’s Richest list in 2012 with a $1.4 billion fortune.
