THIS year, a record 1,826 billionaires made it to Forbes’ annual ranking of the world’s richest people.
There are 29 African billionaires this year, the same number as in 2014.
While two tycoons – South African mining magnate Desmond Sacco and Moroccan real estate mogul Anas Sefrioui fell off the billionaire rankings this year, Mohammed Dewji of Tanzania makes his debut on the list with a fortune estimated at US$1,3 billion. At 39, Dewji is the youngest billionaire in Africa. Dewji’s company, METL Group manufactures textiles and consumer goods and has annual revenues of more than US$1,4 billion. Nigerian-born Femi Otedola, 50, rejoins the list of African billionaires after a five year hiatus with a US$1 billion fortune.
He owns a controlling stake in Forte Oil, a publicly-listed energy distribution company in Nigeria. Folorunsho Alakija of Nigeria and Isabel dos Santos of Angola are the only two female billionaires on the continent.
– Forbes.com
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