Johann Rupert (left) with Aliko Dangote
Mr Johann Rupert, a South African luxury goods magnate, has finally displaced Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote in the position of Africa’s richest individual. Recall that Dangote who is into cement manufacturing amongst other consumables had held the title for 12 consecutive years.
The new ranking is contained in Forbes Magazine in its annual list of Africa’s wealthiest individuals. The Forbes list, which tracks the wealth of African billionaires who reside or have their primary businesses in Africa, shows that the billionaires experienced notable reductions in their wealth in the past year.
Dangote moved down to second position as his net worth dropped to $9.5 billion in the beginning of 2024, from $13.5 billion in 2023 while Rupert’s fortune decreased from $10.7 billion to $10.3 billion, to emerge as Africa’s wealthiest individual.
Johann Rupert
Nigerian billionaires, Mike Adenuga, and Abdulsamad Rabiu also lost a significant amount of their wealth, the report revealed. Consequently, Rabiu moved from 4th to 5th after his net worth reduced from $7.6 billion to $5.9 billion, while Adenuga’s plummeted from $6.3 billion to $3.1 billion moving him down the list from 6th to 10th.
Although experts argued that Naira devaluation and economic policies might have impacted the fortune of the Nigerian billionaires, the reduction in the collective wealth of Africa’s wealthiest individuals is an indicator of the economic challenges faced across African nations.
Others in the top 10 include South African businessman, Nicky Oppenheimer $8.3 billion, Egyptian businessman, Nassef Sawiris $7.4 billion, South African businessman and philanthropist, Nathan Kirsh $5.8 billion, Algerian businessman, Issad Rebrab $4.6 billion, Egyptian businessman, Mohamed Mansour $3.6 billion, and Egyptian billionaire, Naguib Sawiris $3.3 billion.
