Alhaji Aliko Dangote

Aliko Dangote is the founder and President/Chief Executive of Dangote Industries  Limited, the largest conglomerate in West Africa. A graduate of Al-Azhar University  in Cairo, Egypt, Dangote began his business career in 1978, trading in rice, sugar  and cement, before he ventured into full-scale manufacturing.  

The Group he founded, currently has presence in 17 African countries and is a  market leader in cement on the continent. One of the Group's subsidiaries,  Dangote Cement Plc, is the largest listed company in West Africa and the first  Nigerian company to join the Forbes Global 2000 Companies list. The Group has  four other subsidiaries: Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, Dangote  Fertiliser Limited, Dangote Sugar Refinery and NASCON Allied Industries, with the  latter two Business Units listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).  

The Group is diversified and operates in major sectors of the Nigerian economy  including agriculture. The Dangote Fertiliser was commissioned on March 22, 2022  while the Dangote Petroleum Refinery was commissioned on May 22, 2023. The petroleum refinery is the largest single train refinery in the world with the capacity  to refine 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, alongside a petrochemical complex. 

A dedicated humanist and philanthropist, Dangote who is the Chairman of the Aliko  Dangote Foundation (ADF) made an initial endowment of $1.25 billion to the  Foundation in March 2014, enabling it to scale up its work in health, education, and  economic empowerment.  

Aliko Dangote has received many laurels within and outside Nigeria, in recognition  of his achievements and philanthropy. On November 14, 2011, the Nigerian  Government conferred on him the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger 

(GCON), becoming the first person outside government functionaries to bag the  honour. In 2013, he was conferred with the highest national honour in the Republic  of Benin, the Grand Commander of the National Order of the Republic of Benin. In  June 2021, he received the highest civilian honour in Cameroon – the Commander  of the National Order of Valour – from the President of the Republic, Paul Biya. 

In August 2022, Dangote was conferred with the Commander of the Order of Merit  of Niger award by the then President of the Republic of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum  in Niamey, in appreciation for his services rendered to the Republic of Niger and as  well as a tribute to his business acumen and philanthropy. In February 2024, Aliko  Dangote was conferred with an award of the Commander of the Order of the Lion  by the Senegalese President, His Excellency Macky Sall in Dakar, the capital.  

In April 2014, TIME Magazine listed him among its 100 'Most Influential People in  the World. For six consecutive years, 2013 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Forbes  listed him as the 'Most Powerful Man in Africa’ alongside the Egyptian President  Abdel Fatteh el Sisi. In December 2014, he was named ‘Forbes Africa Person of the  Year.’ In September 2015, he was named ‘African Businessman of the Year’ by  London-based IC Publications. In October 2015, Aliko Dangote was listed among ‘50  Most Influential Individuals in the World’ by Bloomberg Markets.  

In January 2020, Bloomberg, in its 2020 Billionaires list of the top 500 billionaires in  the world, ranked Aliko Dangote as the richest man in Africa. He was also ranked  the first in July 2022, in June 2023 and in January 2024. He is, in addition, still the  wealthiest African for the 13th consecutive year, according to both Forbes and  Bloomberg. 

Dangote sits on the board of the Corporate Council on Africa and is a member of  the Steering Committee of the United Nations Secretary-General's Global  Education First Initiative, the Clinton Global Initiative, the McKinsey Advisory  Council, and the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum. He  was named Co-chair of the US-Africa Business Center, in September 2016, by the  US Chamber of Commerce. He is also on the Board of ONE, the anti-poverty group,  co-founded by Bono.