Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has reached a historic milestone, becoming the first African to achieve a net worth of $30 billion. 

According to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, Dangote’s fortune jumped by $2.16 billion this year, including a fresh $430 million rise in recent weeks.

The 68-year-old businessman’s growing wealth is powered by the expansion of his cement and oil refining empire. Dangote recently completed a $160 million cement plant in Attingué, Côte d’Ivoire about 30 kilometers north of Abidjan. 

The new factory, built on a 50-hectare site, can produce up to three million tonnes of cement each year. This development increases Dangote Cement’s total installed capacity across Africa to around 55 million tonnes annually, with operations now in 11 countries.

Dangote’s refinery business is also seeing major progress. He plans to double refining output to 1.4 million barrels per day, which would make the Dangote Group one of the world’s biggest refining operators, even surpassing India’s Jamnagar refinery, which produces 1.36 million barrels daily.

The Dangote Oil Refinery, launched in May 2023 and operational since October that year, initially produced about 370,000 barrels of diesel and jet fuel per day. 

Since then, Dangote’s fortune has grown steadily, reflecting the refinery’s strong performance and rising investor confidence.

Over the past two years, Dangote’s wealth has experienced major swings, from $9.5 billion at the start of 2024 to $27.8 billion by the end of that year. By October 2025, he finally crossed the $30 billion line, a record no African has ever achieved before.