The Poverty of Affluence: Africa’s Four Richest Men Wealthier Than Half The Continent Combined

A recent report revealed that Africa’s four richest individuals: Aliko Dangote (Nigeria, $23.4 B), Johann Rupert (South Africa, $14.6 B), Nicky Oppenheimer (South Africa, $10.5 B), and Nassef Sawiris (Egypt, $9.6 B) hold more collective wealth ($57.4 B) than the combined wealth of half of Africa’s 1.5 billion people. Africa’s billionaire count has risen from zero in 2000 to 23 today, with total wealth growing 56 percent in just five years.

This concentration of wealth is highly “unjust, entirely avoidable, and urgently reversible. Activists warn that regressive IMF programs and ineffective tax structures exacerbate inequality, while kleptocratic governments continue to cut essential services to meet mounting debt obligations. Genuinely progressive leaders will instead tax the rich and invest in education, health, and social protection for the majority, if not for every citizen.