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Dangote, Adenuga, Rabiu, Otedola Remain On Forbes Africas Billionaires List

Nigeria’s wealthiest businessmen, Aliko Dangote, Mike Adenuga, Abdulsamad Rabiu, and Femi Otedola, have emerged as the only Nigerians on the 2025 ‘Africa’s Billionaires List’ compiled by Forbes, which was released on Saturday. Once again, Dangote topped the list for the 14th consecutive year, with an estimated net worth of $23.9 billion, up from $13.9 billion a year ago. The significant jump in his fortune was primarily due to Forbes factoring in the value of his refinery. The Dangote Group operates in diverse sectors, including cement, sugar, flour, salt, seasoning, pasta, beverages, real estate, and projects in oil & gas and fertiliser. On the other hand, Adenuga, who ranked fifth on the list, had $6.8 billion in his portfolio during the period under review, while Rabiu was worth $5.1 billion. Adenuga runs the Pan-African telecommunications company, Globacom, while Rabiu owns the BUA Group, with interests in cement, sugar, oil, and other sectors. Nigerian business mogul and philanthropist Otedola emerged as the 16th richest person in Africa on the Forbes list, with his wealth surging by over 30 per cent in the last year. In the newly released list, Forbes stated that Otedola’s wealth reached $1.5 billion during the period, making him one of the fastest-growing billionaires, second only to Johann Rupert of South Africa, whose fortune grew by 39 per cent. A prominent Nigerian businessman, Otedola has established and led several companies across various sectors, with many notable enterprises associated with his name. Checks revealed that some of these include Geregu Power Plc, the first electricity-generating company in Nigeria to be listed on the Nigerian Exchange in October 2022, where he serves as Chairman. Additionally, he is the Chairman of First Holdco Plc, formerly FBN Holdings Plc, a financial holding company that serves as the parent company for a diversified group of financial services businesses, including commercial banking, merchant banking, capital markets, trusteeship, and insurance brokerage, operating across Africa. A dedicated philanthropist, Otedola has been a significant supporter of Save the Children, donating billions of naira and earning a Vice President role in recognition of his efforts to improve the lives of children in Nigeria. Save the Children is an organisation that works to support vulnerable children worldwide. “Another billionaire whose fortune grew by more than 30 per cent was Femi Otedola of Nigeria ($1.5 billion), chairman of listed power generation firm Geregu Power Plc. Shares of Geregu surged by approximately 40 per cent in the past year following a rise in revenue and profits,” the Forbes report stated. The Forbes list tracks the wealth of African billionaires who reside in Africa or have their primary business there. Net worths were calculated using stock prices and currency exchange rates as of the close of business on 7 March 2025. Forbes noted that net worth changes were measured from its 2024 African billionaires list, published in January 2024. To value privately held businesses, Forbes starts with estimates of revenues or profits and applies prevailing price-to-sales or price-to-earnings ratios for comparable public companies. Similarly, the report highlighted that the cumulative wealth of Africa’s billionaires surpassed $100 billion for the first time, as the continent’s 22 billionaires saw their combined fortunes rise to $105 billion, up from $82.4 billion and 20 billionaires last year. South Africa had the highest number of billionaires this year, with seven, followed by Nigeria and Egypt, with four billionaires each.

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NCDC Records 103 Lassa Fever Deaths, 563 Confirmed Cases

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday, confirmed 563 Lassa fever cases out of the 2,960 suspected cases of the disease and 103 deaths as of March 9, 2025. The situation report of the hemorrhagic fever for Week 10 also showed that the disease has spread to 14 states and 78 local government areas with a Case Fatality Ratio of 18.3 per cent. The confirmed cases were reported in Ondo (175), Bauchi (139), Edo (98), Taraba (84), Ebonyi (17), Kogi (15), Gombe (11), Plateau (10), Benue (five), Nasarawa (three), Delta (two), Cross-River (two), Enugu (one), and Anambra (one). Lassa fever, a disease that spreads during the dry season in Nigeria, is an animal-borne or zoonotic, acute viral illness spread by the common African rat also known as the mastomys rat species. The report partly read, “In Week 10, the number of new confirmed cases decreased from 29 in epi week 9, of 2025 to 28. These were reported in Bauchi, Ondo, Edo, Plateau, Delta, Anambra, Kogi, and Taraba States. “Cumulatively in week 10, 2025, 103 deaths have been reported with a CFR of 18.3 per cent which is lower than the CFR for the same period in 2024 (18.9 per cent). “In total for 2025, 14 States have recorded at least one confirmed case across 78 Local Government Areas.” It said 73 per cent of all confirmed Lassa fever cases were reported from Ondo, Bauchi, and Edo, while 27 per cent were reported from 11 states with confirmed Lassa fever cases. It added that of the 73 per cent confirmed cases, Ondo reported 31 per cent, Bauchi 25 per cent, and Edo 17 per cent. It revealed that the predominant age group affected is 21-30 years (Range: 1 to 94 years, Median Age: 30 years). The male-to-female ratio for confirmed cases is 1:0.8. It said the number of suspected cases decreased compared to that reported for the same period in 2024. “One new healthcare worker was affected in the reporting week 10. “National Lassa fever multi-partner, multi-sectoral Incident Management System activated to coordinate the response activities at all levels,” it added. It further said 351 persons have been listed for follow-up over the possibility of being infected with Lassa fever.