Aliko Dangote is World’s 43rd Richest Man

Aliko Dangote

• Targets list of top five richest men in four years

Yemi Ajayi

Cement mogul, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, moved up 33 places from the 76th position, which he occupied on the list of richest men and women in the world compiled by US-based Forbes Magazine last year, to emerge the 43rd richest man on earth in 2013.

According to the magazine, Dangote was valued at $16.1 billion in 2013 and retained his position as Africa’s richest man for the third year in a row.

The second Nigerian on the list is Michael Adenuga Jnr, with a net worth of $4.7 billion. Adenuga occupied the 267th position on the Forbes list and is the fifth richest man in Africa.
Speaking exclusively to THISDAY last night, Dangote said his target is to enter the exclusive league of top five richest men in the world in the next four years.

Currently, the top five positions are occupied by Mexico’s Carlos Slim with a net worth of $73 billion, followed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who is valued at $67 billion.

Following closely on their heels are Spanish billionaire and owner of Zara clothing chain Amanco Ortega with a net worth of $57 billion; US investment guru, Warren Buffet - $53.5 billion; and Oracle’s Larry Ellison - $43 billion.

Dangote, who has massive investments in the cement, sugar and real estate sector, had an eventful year in 2012.

In October, he sold off controlling interest in his Dangote Flour Plc to Tiger Brands of South Africa and pocketed $190 million in cash. In February, his Dangote Sugar Refineries acquired a 95-per-cent stake in Nigerian sugar producer Savannah Sugar in a bid to maintain its dominant position in the local sugar industry.

He also did the ground breaking for the 2.8-million-ton fertiliser plant in Edo State at a cost of $1.7 billion and when finished, will be the largest in the world. The plant is scheduled for completion in three years’ time.

Dangote said he intends to ramp up cement production at his plants in the next four years from the current 16-17 million tonnes in Nigeria and Ghana to 100 million tonnes from new output coming from sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East.

Last year, the business man stepped up his philanthropy, giving over $100 million to causes ranging from education to health, flood relief, poverty alleviation and the arts. He also acquired a yacht, which he named after his mother, Amiya.

Adenuga owns Globacom — Nigeria’s second largest telecommunications firm, Conoil and some stake in Sterling Bank Nigeria. He founded Globacom in 2003.

It has 24 million customers in Nigeria, operates in the Republic of Benin, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.

His Conoil Producing is one of Nigeria’s largest independent exploration companies, with a production of some 100,000 barrels of crude oil per day.

Other famous people on the Forbe’s list include, Google co-founder and CEO, Larry Page, with $23 billion, is 20th on the list. Fellow Co-founder, Sergey Brin, is 21st with $22.8 billion.

Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, is 66th on the list with $13.3 billion, while Oprah Winfrey is the 503rd person, with $2.8 billion. Many of the billionaires give millions in philanthropy every year.