Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote has topped the 2022 list of Africa’s richest persons for the 11th year in a row, Forbes magazine said in a report.
Billionaires in Africa, as elsewhere in the world, are richer than they previously were, despite the global pandemic. The continent’s 18 billionaires are worth an average $4.1 billion, 12% more than a year ago, driven in part by Nigeria’s surging stock market.
For the tenth year in a row, Aliko Dangote of Nigeria is the continent’s richest person, worth $12.1 billion, up by $2 billion from last year’s list thanks to a roughly 30% rise in the share price of Dangote Cement, by far his most valuable asset.
Forbes estimated the growth of Dangote’s wealth which soared from $12.1 billion last year to roughly $13.9 billion, with a 30% increase in the stock price of Dangote Cement, his most valuable asset.
The magazine stated “A surge in housing developments in Nigeria and growth in government infrastructure spending drove higher demand in the first nine months of 2021.”
Two other Nigerian billionaires, Abdulsamad Rabiu and Mike Adenuga, ranked 6th and 7th richest persons on the continent with estimated values of $7 billion and $6.7 billion respectively
The second richest is Nassef Sawiris of Egypt, whose largest asset is a nearly 6% stake in sportswear maker Adidas.
At number three: Nicky Oppenheimer of South Africa, who inherited a stake in diamond firm DeBeers and ran the company until 2012, when he sold his family’s 40% stake in DeBeers to mining giant AngloAmerican for $5.1 billion.
