Africa’s richest man and President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has rejected recent estimates of his personal wealth, saying such rankings do not accurately reflect the value of his businesses.
Dangote described wealth rankings as “very distractive” and said he does not pay much attention to them.
He made the remarks in an interview with popular TikToker School of Hard Knocks.
Forbes currently estimates Dangote’s real-time net worth at $31.4 billion. However, the businessman said the value of his assets was much higher than the figures being reported.
Dangote specifically pointed to the Dangote Refinery, saying the facility alone was worth more than $40 billion.
“Our refinery, I know, is worth over $40bn, just the refinery,” he said.
He also referred to a Forbes estimate of $38 billion, explaining that most of his businesses are not listed on the stock market.
“Forbes said I am worth $38bn but most of our businesses are not listed yet,” Dangote said.
Rather than focusing on wealth rankings, Dangote said his priority was to expand his businesses, create jobs and generate more economic value across Africa.
He disclosed that Dangote Group has a target of generating more than $100 billion in revenue by 2030, with the company’s activities focused largely on Africa.
“We have a vision in 2030 to be more than $100bn revenue, all coming out of Africa,” he said.
Dangote also said the group recorded about $10 billion in revenue in the first quarter.
He explained that his decision to invest heavily in African industries was influenced by the economic development he witnessed in Asia.
According to him, much of Asia’s growth was driven by investments made by Asians themselves.
“The issue is that I have seen the development of Asia and I have seen that Asia is only being developed by Asians,” he said.
Dangote said the experience convinced him that Africans must play a bigger role in developing their own economies while also attracting foreign investors.
He identified Africa’s dependence on imported goods as another reason for his investment in large-scale manufacturing.
According to him, products such as cement and sugar were previously imported into many African countries, limiting local production, job creation and economic growth.
He said Africa must reduce its dependence on imports and build stronger industries within the continent.
Dangote added that his goal was not only to invest in African businesses but also to encourage other investors to bring their capital into the continent and support its industrial development.
He expressed optimism that Africa could become a major global economic centre because of its large young population and abundant natural resources.
Dangote noted that about 70 per cent of Africa’s population is below the age of 30. He also said the continent has about 60 per cent of the world’s arable land and two-thirds of its mineral resources.
He said these advantages could help Africa achieve significant economic growth if properly developed and supported by investment.
