It’s fascinating to see how Africa’s top leaders come into their wealth. Some got rich from inheritances. Some are criticized for abusing the wealth that came with power, and for forgetting their origins. Here are 12 of the wealthiest leaders in Africa.
Robert Mugabe:
$10 million (Zimbabwe) As of the end of 2014, President Robert Mugabe’s net worth was $10 million, according to AlJazeera. The president turned 91 in February 2015, at which point he had been president for 34 years. Mugabe is the longest-serving leader of an African nation.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II:
$10 million (Ashanti, Ghana) Otumfuo Osei Tutu has been the King of Ashanti since 1999. Ashanti is a gold-rich region, and so it was naturally the location for Tutu’s company, Transpomech Ghana, which provides mining equipment to local companies.
Idriss Deby:
$50 million (Chad) Idriss Deby has been president since 1990, when he took control through a rebel movement. Deby is known as a tough leader who has seen his country through more than 40 civil wars.
Oba Okunade Sijuwade:
$75 million (Ile-Ife, Nigeria) Oba Okunade Sijuwade is king of Ile-Ife in the Osun state, Nigeria. Sijuwade is 84 years old and has been in power for 35 years. Sijuwade founded the Sijuwade Group in 1975, which invests in oil and gas, construction, property development and hospitality.
Goodluck Jonathan:
$100 million (Nigeria) Goodluck Jonathan just lost the Nigerian election of 2015 to Muhammadu Buhari, but his Peoples Democratic Party ruled Nigeria since 1999. By the end of his term, Jonathan lost popularity. Under Jonathan’s rule, “ Nigeria has been pummeled by Boko Haram (a terrorist group), its economic fortunes have plunged with falling oil prices, inequality is rampant, and corruption scandals have tarnished the president’s image,” Nytimes.com reports
King Mswati III: $100 million (Swaziland)
King Mswati III has been criticized for living on a household budget of around $60 million per year, when most people in Swaziland live on less than $1 per day. Recently, according to News24.com, Mswati “urged his subjects to ‘protect the country’ from pro-democracy groups which portrayed a negative image of the nation abroad.” That “negative image” recently cost Swaziland foreign business contracts.
Paul Biya:
$200 million (Cameroon) Paul Biya, 82, has been president of Cameroon for nearly 22 years. He fought the militant Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram and recently gave more than 400 soldiers medals for fighting the group.
Oba Obateru Akinruntan:
$300 million (Ugbo Land, Nigeria) Oba Obateru Akinruntan is the King of Ugbo Land, in the Ondo State. Akinruntan became king in 2009 and is the founder of Obat Oil, a major oil trading company in Nigeria.
Uhuru Kenyatta:
$500 million (Kenya) Uhuru Kenyatta has held office since 2013 but had several political positions before that. Uhuru Kenyatta’s father, Jomo Kenyatta, was the country’s first president. Before becoming president, Uhuru Kenyatta was already one of Kenya’s richest citizens with a net worth of $500 million.
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo:
$600 million (Equatorial Guinea) Teodoro ObiangNguema Mbasogo has been president of Equatorial Guinea since 1979, taking power in a military coup against his uncle. Because of its rich oil resources, Equatorial Guinea is one of the wealthiest African nations but many accuse the president and his family of not distributing it evenly and keeping most of that wealth for themselves.
Mohammed VI of Morocco:
$2.1 billion (Morocco) King Mohammed VI of Morocco celebrated his 15th year as head of the country in 2014. He is the son of King Hassan II, who left his son around 40 percent in a state-owned investment company when he died.
Jose Eduardo dos Santos:
$20 billion (Angola) Jose Eduardo dos Santos has been in power for more than 35 years. During his term, he has been criticized for not doing enough to overcome childhood hunger in Angola. Many believe he funnels the money to a small ruling elite, or invests too much in security and defense and not enough in health.
