President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote retained his Africa’s richest man position for the eighth consecutive time though his wealth dipped by $2 billion from $12.2 billion in January 2018 to $10 billion this year, Forbes’ Africa Billionaires List released yesterday showed.
The Chairman of Globacom with interests in oil exploration and real estate, Dr Mike Adenuga Jnr moved up to be Africa’s second richest man.
The United States (U.S.) magazine said Adenuga’s net worth increased tremendously from $5.3 billion to $9.2 billion because he provided more detailed information about his assets.
Also, the Chief Executive Officer of BUA Group, Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, featured on the list for the first time since 2015.
The merger between Rabiu’s Kalambaina Cement firm with Cement Company of Northern Nigeria, which he controlled, in December 2018 was formally consummated in Sokoto earlier this week. He now owns 97 per cent of the entity.
Kalambaina, which operates a new cement production facility, started selling cement in mid-last year just as Rabiu’s OBU Cement has expanded its operations, adding a new production line.
Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, whose net worth dropped to $1.1 billion from $1.3 billion, was ranked 19th. She is vice chair, Famfa Oil, an indigenous oil exploration company with a stake in Agbami Oilfield, a prolific offshore asset. Famfa Oil’s partners include Chevron and Petrobras.
Alakija’s first company was a fashion label whose customers included the wife of former military President Ibrahim Babangida.
The Federal Government awarded Alakija’s company an oil prospecting license in 1993, which was later converted to an oil mining lease.
Alakija’s ranking was in a tie with South African banker, Michiel Le Roux.
Forbes blamed plunging stock values and weaker currencies for the shrinking in the billionaires club in Africa.
It said: “Buffeted by plunging stock prices and weaker currencies, the number of African billionaires has shrunk to just 20, down from 23 a year ago.
“Four people fell off Forbes’ annual list of the continent’s richest since last year while one returned to the ranks after a four-year absence. All but four members of the list have smaller fortunes than a year ago.”
In a per country ranking, Egypt and South Africa are tied with five billionaires each, followed by Nigeria with four and Morocco- two. Forbes found one billionaire each from Algeria, Angola, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
