Top 20 Richest Men in Africa 2024: Their Age, Business and Net Worth

According to 2024 Forbes ranking, Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote is Africa’s richest man with a net-worth estimated at $11.7 billion.

The second richest person in Africa is South Africa’s billionaire Johann Rupert. He is the chairman of Swiss luxury goods firm Compagnie Financiere Richemont, the company best known for brands Cartier and Montblanc. He is currently worth an estimated $10.3 billion.

Nicky Oppenheimer ($9.5 billion), Nassef Onsi Sawiris ($9.3 billion), and Mike Adenuga ($6.7 billion) complete the top 5 richest men in Africa.

According to Forbes, there are 18 billionaires from Africa and they hail from seven different countries. South Africa and Egypt each have five billionaires, followed by Nigeria with three and Morocco with two. Algeria, Tanzania and Zimbabwe all have one billionaire each.

The only two female billionaires from Africa have both fallen off the list. Forbes calculates that the fortune of Folorunsho Alakija of Nigeria, who owns an oil exploration company, dropped below $1 billion due to lower oil prices. And Isabel dos Santos, who since 2013 has been the richest woman in Africa, was knocked from her perch by a series of court decisions freezing her assets in both Angola and Portugal.

The Top 20 Richest Men in Africa, their Age, Business and Net Worth, (2024)

1. Aliko Dangote

Net Worth: $11.7 billion
Country: Nigeria
Source of Wealth: cement, sugar, flour, oil
Age: 67

Aliko Dangote GCON (Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger) is a Nigerian billionaire businessman, and the owner of the Dangote Group, which has interests in commodities in Nigeria and other African countries. As of September 2024, he had an estimated net worth of US$11.7 billion.

He is the great-grandson of Alhaji Alhassan Dantata, the richest West African at the time of his death in 1955.

Dangote Group was established as a small trading firm in 1977, the same year Dangote relocated to Lagos to expand the company. Today, it is a multi-trillion naira conglomerate with many of its operations in Benin, Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia and Togo.

Dangote has expanded to cover food processing, cement manufacturing, refinery and freight. The Dangote Group also dominates the sugar market in Nigeria and is a major supplier to the country’s soft drink companies, breweries, and confectioners.

Dangote is ranked by Forbes Billionaires Index as the richest black man alive.

2. Johann Rupert

Net Worth: $10.3 Billion
Country: South Africa
Source of Wealth: luxury goods
Age: 74

Johann Peter Rupert is a South African-born entrepreneur, who is the eldest son of business tycoon Anton Rupert.

Johann Rupert is chairman of Swiss luxury goods firm Compagnie Financiere Richemont, the company is best known for the brands Cartier and Montblanc. He owns a 7% stake in diversified investment firm Remgro, which he chairs, as well as 25% of Reinet, an investment holding co. based in Luxembourg.

Together with his family, he was estimated to be worth $10.3 billion as of September 2024, and was ranked as the wealthiest man in South Africa and the second richest man in Africa.

3. Nicky Oppenheimer

Net Worth: $9.5 Billion
Country: South Africa
Source of Wealth: Diamonds
Age: 79

Nicholas F. Oppenheimer is a South African billionaire businessman, philanthropist and the 3rd richest man in Africa and the second richest man in South Africa. He was formerly the chairman of De Beers diamond the mining company and of its subsidiary, the Diamond Trading Company, and former deputy chairman of Anglo American.

Nicholas Oppenheimer’s grandfather is the first generation to chair De Beers (an international corporation that specialises in diamond exploration, diamond mining, diamond retail, diamond trading and industrial diamond manufacturing sectors), from 1929.

Oppenheimer, heir to his family’s fortune, sold his 40% stake in diamond firm DeBeers to mining group Anglo American for $5.1 billion in cash in 2012.

He is currently running Fireblade Aviation, an aviation company he started in 2014 based in Johannesburg which operates chartered flights with its fleet of 3 planes and 2 helicopters.

4. Nassef Sawiris

Net Worth: $9.3 billion
Country: Egypt
Source of Wealth: construction, chemicals
Age: 63

Nassef Onsi Sawiris is an Egyptian billionaire businessman, the youngest of Onsi Sawiris’ three sons. As of September 2024, his net worth was estimated to be $9.3 billion, making him the 4th richest man in Africa and second richest in Egypt, according to Forbes.

He runs OCI, one of the world’s largest nitrogen fertilizer producers, with plants in Texas and Iowa; it trades on the Euronext Amsterdam exchange.

His holdings include stakes in cement giant Lafarge Holcim and Adidas; he sits on the supervisory board of Adidas.

Sawiris’ most valuable asset is a 5.7% stake in shoemaker Adidas which is worth a bit more than $4 billion.

He is also the chairman of Aston Villa F.C.

5. Mike Adenuga

Net Worth: $6.7 Billion
Country: Nigeria
Source of Wealth: telecom, oil, Self Made
Age: 71

Mike Adenuga, GCON (Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger) is third richest person in Nigeria, and the fifth richest man in Africa. His company Globacom is Nigeria’s third largest telecom operator with over 40 million subscribers, with presence in Ghana and Benin.

Mike Adenuga also owns stakes in the oil exploration firm Conoil which operates 6 oil blocks in the Niger Delta.

According to Forbes, Mike has an estimated net worth at $6.7 billion as of September 2024.

6. Abdulsamad Rabiu

Net Worth: $4.4 Billion
Country: Nigeria
Source of Wealth: cement, sugar
Age: 64

Abdul Samad is the second richest billionaire in Nigeria and the 6th richest man in Africa. He is the founder and chairman of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate concentrating on manufacturing, infrastructure and agriculture and producing a revenue in excess of $2.5 billion. He is also the chairman of the Nigerian Bank of Industry (BOI).

His group BUA International Limited was established in 1988 for the sole purpose of commodity trading. The company deals on rice, edible oil, flour, sugar refining, real estate, cement, and iron and steel.

The combined firm, called BUA Cement Plc, trades on the Nigerian stock exchange; Rabiu owns 98.5% of it.

In September 2024, Forbes estimated his wealth at $4.4 billion.

7. Naguib Sawiris

Net Worth: $3.8 Billion
Country: Egypt
Source of Wealth: Telecom
Age: 70

Naguib Onsi Sawiris is an Egyptian billionaire businessman and the eighth richest man in Africa. He is the chairman of Weather Investments’s parent company, and Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holding S.A.E which has stakes in a major asset manager in Egypt and an Italian internet company, among others.

He built a fortune in telecom, selling Orascom Telecom in 2011 to Russian telecom firm VimpelCom (now Veon) in a multibillion-dollar transaction.

He is also the chairman of La Mancha Resources Inc the company has stakes in Evolution Mining, Endeavour Mining and Golden Star Resources, which operate gold mines in Africa and Australia. The Company also holds interest in properties located in Africa, Western Australia, and South America.

Sawiris also owns a luxury resort called Silversands in Grenada.

In September 2024, Forbes estimated his wealth at $3.8 billion.

8. Mohamed Mansour

Net Worth: $3.3 Billion
Country: Egypt
Source of Wealth: diversified, Self Made
Age: 76

Mohamed Mansour is an Egyptian billionaire businessman and former politician.

He was born into one of the most prominent business families in Alexandria. The family business, Mansour Group, controls nine of Egypt’s top Fortune 500 companies.

Mohamed Mansour is currently the chairman of Mansour Group, a US$6 billion conglomerate – that is the second largest company in Egypt by revenue.

In September 2024, Forbes estimated his wealth at $3.3 billion making him the third richest man in Egypt and eighth richest in Africa.

9. Patrice Motsepe

Net Worth: $3 Billion
Country: South Africa
Source of Wealth: mining, Self Made
Age: 62

Patrice Motsepe is a South African mining billionaire businessman of Tswana descent. He is the founder and executive chairman of African Rainbow Minerals, which has interests in gold, ferrous metals, base metals, and platinum.

Patrice Motsepe sits on several company boards, including being the non-executive chairman of Harmony Gold, the world’s 12th largest gold mining company, and the deputy chairman of Sanlam.

Motsepe is the owner of Mamelodi Sundowns F.C. a Premier league soccer club. Motsepe also has a 37% stake in the Blue Bulls Co., South Africa’s best performing rugby team.

Patrice Motsepe was estimated to be worth $3 billion as of September 2024, and was ranked as the youngest billionaire in South Africa and the 9th richest man in Africa on the Forbes Rich List for 2024.

10. Koos Bekker

Net Worth: $2.9 Billion
Country: South Africa
Source of Wealth: media, investments, Self Made
Age: 71

Jacobus Petrus “Koos” Bekker is a South African billionaire businessman, and the chairman of media group Naspers. The company operates in 130 countries, is listed on the London and Johannesburg Stock Exchanges, and has the largest market capitalization of any media company outside the US and China.

Koos Bekker is revered for transforming South African newspaper publisher Naspers into an ecommerce investor & cable TV powerhouse.

Forbes magazine ranked Bekker as the 10th wealthiest man in Africa, and the third wealthiest South African in 2024, with a fortune of US$2.9 billion.

11. Issad Rebrab

Net Worth: $2.5 Billion
Country: Algeria
Source of Wealth: food, Self Made
Age: 80

Issad Rebrab is an Algerian billionaire businessman and the CEO of the Cevital industrial group, the largest private company in Algeria, active in steel, food, agribusiness and electronics.

His company Cevital owns one of the largest sugar refineries in the world, with the capacity to produce 2 million tons a year.

Cevital also owns European companies, including French home appliances maker Groupe Brandt, an Italian steel mill and a German water purification company.

In 2019, he was sentenced to six months for tax, banking and customs offenses. Rebrab was released on January 1, 2020.

As of September 2024, Rebrab had an estimated net worth of US$2.5 billion and is the 11th richest man in Africa.

12. Strive Masiyiwa

Net Worth: $2.1 Billion
Country: Zimbabwe
Source of Wealth: telecom, Self Made
Age: 63

Strive Masiyiwa is a London-based Zimbabwean billionaire businessman, and philanthropist. He is the founder and executive chairman of the telecommunications, media and technology company Econet Wireless.

He owns just over 50% of the publicly-traded Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, which is one part of his larger Econet Group.

Masiyiwa also owns over half of private company Liquid Telecom, which provides fiber optic and satellite services to telecom firms across Africa.

His other assets include stakes in mobile phone networks in Burundi and Lesotho, and investments in fintech and power distribution firms in Africa.

As of 2024, Strive Masiyiwa has an estimated net worth of US $2.1 billion.

13. Michiel Le Roux

Net Worth: $1.9 Billion
Country: South Africa
Source of Wealth: banking, Self Made
Age: 75

Michiel Le Roux is a South African billionaire and founder of ‘Capitec Bank’ the largest retail bank in South Africa. He founded Capitec Bank in 2001 and owns about an 11% stake.

Forbes magazine ranked Michiel Le Roux as the 5th wealthiest person in South Africa, and the 13th wealthiest man in Africa, with a fortune of US$1.9 billion.

14. Mohammed Dewji

Net Worth: $1.8 Billion
Country: Tanzania
Source of Wealth: diversified
Age: 49

Mohammed Dewji is a Tanzanian billionaire businessman and former politician. He is the owner of MeTL Group, a Tanzanian conglomerate founded by his father in the 1970s.

His company ‘MeTL Group’ has investments in manufacturing, agriculture, trading, finance, mobile telephony, insurance, real estate, transport and logistics, and food and beverages. The group conducts business in 11 countries and employs over 28,000 people.

As of 2024, Dewji has an estimated net worth of US $1.8 billion, therefore positioning him as Tanzania’s only billionaire, the 14th richest man in Africa and the youngest billionaire in Africa.

15. Aziz Akhannouch

Net Worth: $1.7 Billion
Country: Morocco
Source of Wealth: petroleum, diversified
Age: 63

Aziz Akhannouch is a Moroccan businessman and current Minister of Agriculture since 2007.

He is the CEO of Akwa Group, a Moroccan conglomerate that has interests in petroleum, gas and chemicals through publicly-traded Afriquia Gaz and Maghreb Oxygene. He is also the president of a royalist political party.

Forbes estimates his net worth at $1.7 billion as of September 2024.

16. Othman Benjelloun

Net Worth: $1.6 Billion
Country: Morocco
Source of Wealth: banking, insurance
Age: 91

Othman Benjelloun is a Moroccan billionaire businessman and the oldest billionaire in Africa. He is CEO of BMCE Bank of Africa, which has a presence in more than 20 African countries. He also has a stake in the Moroccan arm of French telecom firm ‘Orange’.

Othman Benjelloun also co-owns Ranch Adarouch, one of the biggest cattle breeders in Africa.

As of 2024, Othman Benjelloun has an estimated net worth of US $1.6 billion making him the 16th richest man in Africa.

17. Youssef Mansour

Net Worth: $1.3 Billion
Country: Egypt
Source of Wealth: diversified, Self Made
Age: 79

Youssef Mansour is an Egyptian billionaire businessman and part owner of the Mansour Group. There he oversees the consumer goods division, which includes supermarket chain Metro, and sole distribution rights for L’Oreal in Egypt.

Forbes “Africa Rich List 2024” ranked Youssef Mansour as the 17th wealthiest man in Africa, with a fortune of US$1.3 billion.

18. Yasseen Mansour

Net Worth: $1.2 Billion
Country: Egypt
Source of Wealth: diversified, Self Made
Age: 63

Yasseen Mansour is an Egyptian billionaire businessman, and a shareholder in his family-owned conglomerate Mansour Group, which was founded by his father Loutfy in 1952.

He is also chairman of Palm Hills Developments, a Mansour Group company, and one of Egypt’s largest real estate developers.

Forbes magazine ranked Yasseen as the 18th wealthiest man in Africa for 2024, with a fortune of US$1.2 billion.

Top 20 Richest People in Africa 2024

Top 10 Richest Black People in the World 2024

The Black billionaires below are individuals of African ancestry with a net worth of at least US$1 billion.

1. Aliko Dangote, $11.7 billion (Nigeria)

Aliko Dangote is a Nigerian businessman and philanthropist who according to Forbes is the richest black person in the world. He is the founder and CEO of the Dangote Group, a conglomerate that operates in several countries in Africa and is involved in industries such as cement, sugar, and flour. Dangote’s wealth is estimated to be worth $14.4 billion, and he is known for his philanthropic efforts, which include supporting education and healthcare in Africa.

2. David Steward, $11.4 billion (United States)

David Steward is an American businessman and the second richest black man in the world. He is the founder and chairman of World Wide Technology, one of the largest African-American-owned businesses in the United States. The company specializes in providing technology products and services to government and commercial clients. According to Forbes, Steward has an estimated net worth of over $11 billion and is considered one of the most successful and influential business leaders in the US.

3. Robert Smith, $10.8 billion (United States)

Robert Smith is a billionaire businessman and philanthropist. He is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, a private equity firm that specializes in software and technology investments. Smith has a net worth of $10.8 billion, making him the third wealthiest black man in the world.

Smith is known for his philanthropy, particularly in the areas of education and economic empowerment for underprivileged communities. In 2019, he made headlines for pledging to pay off the student loan debt of the entire graduating class of Morehouse College, a historically black college.

4. Mike Adenuga, $6.7 billion (Nigeria)

Mike Adenuga is the founder and chairman of Globacom, Nigeria’s second-largest telecommunications company, and also has significant stakes in the oil and gas industry through his company Conoil. According to Forbes, Adenuga has an estimated net worth of over $6.7 billion and is the fourth richest black man in the world. He is also known for his philanthropy, and has donated to various charitable causes in Nigeria and Africa.

5. Abdulsamad Rabiu, $4.8 billion (Nigeria)

Abdulsamad Rabiu is a businessman, entrepreneur, and the founder and chairman of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate active in industries such as cement production, sugar refining. According to Forbes’, as of 2024, he is the fifth richest black billionaire with a net worth of around $4.8 billion and among the top 5 richest men in Africa.

Top 10 Richest Black People in the World 2024

Revised in November 2024.