Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is inside attain of a uncommon milestone. A gentle rise within the worth of his firms on the Nigerian Trade and a stronger naira have pushed his estimated fortune to $29.8 billion, placing him simply $200 million wanting the $30 billion mark, based on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
The 67-year-old industrialist, who constructed his fortune from cement, sugar, and most just lately oil refining, has gained about $1.72 billion this year. His wealth stood at $28.1 billion at the beginning of 2025 and has since climbed alongside renewed investor confidence in his listed companies and Nigeria’s foreign money restoration.
Dangote’s billion-dollar cement empire thrives
A lot of the achieve comes from Dangote’s controlling 87.45 p.c stake in Dangote Cement Plc, Africa’s largest cement producer. The corporate’s shares have risen sharply this 12 months, lifting its market worth above $6.8 billion. His stake alone is now value about $5.9 billion. The surge follows the group’s robust monetary efficiency and constant dividend payout.
Dangote Cement reported a 17.7 percent rise in revenue to N2.07 trillion ($1.35 billion) within the first half of 2025, in contrast with N1.76 trillion ($1.15 billion) a 12 months earlier. Web revenue jumped 174 p.c to N520.46 billion ($340 million), underscoring the corporate’s pricing power and value self-discipline regardless of barely decrease gross sales volumes.
Inside Aliko Dangote’s $20 billion non-public holdings
Past his listed firms—Dangote Cement, Dangote Sugar Refinery, and Nascon Allied Industries—a lot of Dangote’s fortune is tied to privately held ventures. His $20 billion oil refinery which started operations in 2024 and is taken into account Africa’s largest industrial undertaking represents the majority of his wealth with a valuation of $18.6 billion.
His fertilizer enterprise provides one other $3.02 billion, whereas oil mining licenses OML 71 and 72 contribute about $497 million. Bloomberg additionally lists his non-public jet fleet at $76 million, Lagos actual property at $148 million, landholdings within the Lekki Free Commerce Zone at $100 million, and money and different property round $744 million.
Dangote’s $30 billion push positive aspects momentum
Dangote’s rise to close the $30 billion mark displays greater than robust inventory efficiency. It highlights his rising dominance in key industries—cement, oil refining and fertilizer—that sit on the coronary heart of Nigeria’s economic system. If present developments proceed, he may quickly turn out to be the primary African to affix the ranks of the world’s wealthiest people on the $30 billion threshold.
