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Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, has retained his position as the continent’s wealthiest man for the eleventh year in a row, as Africa’s billionaires recorded an impressive surge in their net worth in 2021 despite the impact of the global pandemic on financial assets.
Dangote recorded a $1.8-billion wealth hike in 2021, up from $2 billion the previous year, as his net worth increased to $13.9 billion (Bloomberg values his wealth at $20.4 billion).
The surge in his net worth was triggered by a 30-percent increase in the stock price of Dangote Cement, his most valuable asset. Meanwhile, 18 of the continent’s billionaires tracked by Forbes saw a $4.7-billion wealth increase during the year, compared to a $4.1-billion wealth gain in 2020.
With no new members joining Forbes’ exclusive list of African billionaires last year, the continent’s 18 billionaires are worth an estimated $84.9 billion, a 15-percent increase from the previous year when they were worth a combined $73.8 billion.
Johann Rupert, South Africa’s richest man, has risen two places to become Africa’s second-wealthiest man, with a net worth of $11 billion (Bloomberg values his wealth at $11.9 billion). Rupert’s fortune grew by more than $3.8 billion in 2021 thanks to a 60-percent increase in the share price of his luxury goods holding company, Richemont.
With a net worth of $8.7 billion (Bloomberg values his wealth at $8.2 billion), Nicky Oppenheimer is the third-richest man in Africa, while Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris and Nigerian industrialist Abdul Samad Rabiu are the fourth- and fifth-wealthest men in Africa, respectively.
Rabiu’s net worth has risen by more than $1.5 billion in the last year, to more than $7 billion, after he took another of his companies public.
Strive Masiyiwa, a Zimbabwean billionaire, saw his net worth increase by 125 percent to $2.7 billion in 2021, from $1.2 billion, thanks to a 750-percent increase in the shares of his publicly-traded telecom company, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe.
