Henley Global Wealth Report Short-Changes Nigeria’s Billionaires

Wealth compiler  Henley Global might be missing out on something in its 2024 wealth report. Or its method of assessing Africans’ wealth follows a different tack this time. Especially for the dollar-rich billionaires who make Motherland home.

Two things stand out in the report, though.  Wealth is dwindling across the continent’s four richest countries, including South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, and Algeria. The rate has even fallen deeper in Nigeria: 45 percent. That’s way below Algeria’s, Egypt’s, and South Africa’s: 28 percent, 22 percent, and 20 percent respectively.

But some dark horses are coming from the rear to amass more. Mauritius (87 percent), Morocco (35 percent), Namibia (32 percent), Ethiopia (30 percent), Kenya (30 percent), and Ghana (26 percent).

It’s most unlikely the dip in Nigeria’s wealth holding goes so far down as to gulp up one of its four billionaires.  Rich-list compiler Forbes recognizes these four in 2024: Aliko Dangote ranks No. 1 and the most-moneyed black guy on earth. Telecom mogul Mike Adenuga, cement magnate Abdul Samad Rabiu, and investor Femi Otedola follow in that pecking order.

And they all live in Lagos.

Somehow, Henley disregards this in its latest report. Its record indicates Nigeria has only three billionaires, and they all live in Lagos. The figure comes behind Egypt’s seven, South Africa’s five spread across Jo’burg, Pretoria, and Cape Town, Morocco’s four, and Algeria’s one.

Put together, 21 billionaires, 135,200 millionaires, and 342 centimillionaires hold Africa’s total investable wealth that stands at $2.5 trillion. Those figures hardly add up in terms of ratio. The continent remains the second largest in the world, and yet boasts of 21 billionaires. 

But the Henley Global report identifies others. Like the world’s richest man Elon Musk and other African men of wealth living outside of the continent.

Maybe the grass is greener out there. 

Those on the continent still don’t have to despair. The IMF’s growth projection for Africa in 2024 stands at 4 percent, making it the second-fastest growing continent behind Asia. And according to the African Development Bank, 15 African countries have shown prospects of expansion above 5 percent, the report states.

So Africa, with its billionaires, will rise again.