‘Nigeria has 20 billionaires’

There are far more African billionaires than
previously thought, Ventures magazine said
yesterday in a report on the continent’s mega-
rich, but the number of Africans living in
extreme poverty has also shot up.
Previous Africa-rich-lists named as few as 16
billionaires, but Ventures said its exhaustive
research had identified at least 55 on a
continent where the wealthy often fiercely
protect details about their fortunes.
The pan-African business magazine said it was
able to uncover dozens of new billionaires by
using “on-the-ground knowledge” to overcome
hurdles that may have “hampered” other
researchers.
Of the 55, 20 are Nigerian, including several
oil barons, while South Africa and Egypt boast
nine and eight respectively. Ventures’
supported reports by Forbes which listed
Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote as Africa’s richest man
with a fortune of $20.2 billion (15 billion
euros).Dangote, who made his fortune in
cement, heads a multi-interest empire,
profiting from products including flour and
sugar, while eyeing a massive investment in oil
refining.
The continent’s richest woman is Nigeria’s
Folorunsho Alakija, whose Fama Oil owns an
offshore oil block, which she acquired in 1993
“at a relatively inexpensive price”, likely
through a helpful connection, the magazine
said.Alakija studied fashion in London, then
made dresses for Maryam Babaginda, the late
wife of Nigerian military dictator Ibrahim
Babaginda.The former designer “is believed to
have ridden on the crest of this relationship to
acquire an oil block,” off the Niger Delta in
southern Nigeria, said Ventures. – See more at:
The most prominent South African named is
Nicky Oppenheimer, worth an estimated $6.5
billion, whose fortune came largely from the
diamond mines his family controlled for
decades, which were operated by De Beers.
Oppenheimer sold his family’s stake in De
Beers two years ago.
The figure of 55 is “actually an under-estimate”
of Africa’s billionaires, Chi-Chi Okonjo, the
founder of Ventures, told AFP.
“People are not comfortable disclosing their
wealth,” he said. Corruption is rife on the
continent and the rule of law still unevenly
applied. African business moguls often face
accusations that their fortunes were
illegitimately earned, including with extra-legal
help from political patrons.The apparently
rising number of ultra-rich Africans has come
amid broader economic growth on the
continent, which has seen an average of five
percent GDP expansion since 2010.But
economic growth has not kept up with a rising
population.
“There are more than twice as many extremely
poor people living in sub-Saharan Africa today
(414 million) than there were three decades
ago (205 million),” the World Bank said in
April.It is the only region where “the number
of poor people individuals has risen steadily
and dramatically,” over the last 30 years, the
bank said.