Forbes Names Dangote as the World’s 64th Most Powerful Man

ALIKO Dangote has been named as the 64th most powerful person in the world and Africa's leading personality in the latest list of the top 72 most influential people on the planet published by Forbes Magazine.
According to the list published yesterday, Dangote, 56, is only one of the two Africans on the list alongside Mohammed Ibrahim, the Sudanese-British telecommunications billionaire who founded the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. Estimated to have a net worth of $16.1bn, Dangote was named not only for his business activities but also for the influence his philanthropic activities are beginning to give him.
Presiding over one of the most diversified business empires in the world with interests in cement, sugar, flour, salt and, most recently, oil and petrochemicals, Alhaji Dangote is Africa's riches man. Also inspired by fellow billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, Alhaji Dangote is making a name for himself on the philanthropic circuit, giving way millions to education, health and social causes across Africa.

In May, he announced plans to venture into Nigeria's petroleum industry and build Africa's largest refinery in the country at a cost of $9bn. Forbes Magazine's most Powerful list is made up of heads of state, financiers, philanthropists and entrepreneurs.
Topping the list is Russian president Vladimir Putin, who climbed one spot ahead of US president Barack Obama, who held the title in 2012. This year's list features 17 heads of state who run nations with a combined gross domestic product of about $48trn.
Alhaji Dangote was ranked ahead of the likes of Fifa president, Sepp Blatter (69); John Boehner, the speaker of the US House of Representatives (66) and Mohammed Ibrahim (71). He is currently ranked 43 on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires with his net worth on the rise due to the ongoing expansion of the Dangote Group.
Chinese president Xi Jinping, occupies the third spot, while the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, debuts on the list at number four. Pope Francis, who was elected in March this year, leads 12 other new entrants on to the list.
A Forbes spokesperson said: "Our list represents the collective wisdom of top Forbes editors, who consider hundreds of nominees before ranking the planet's top 72 power-brokers. They are one representative for every 100 million people on earth based on their scope of influence and their financial resources relative to their peers."
Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, 29 and North Korean leader, Kim Jung-un, 30, are the youngest people on the list. Mr Zuckerberg occupies the 24th spot while Kim is ranked 46th, while Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, who occupies the eight spot, is the oldest person on the list at 89.