Dangote now 68th most powerful person— Forbes

President/Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Ltd, Aliko Dangote has been ranked among the World’s most powerful 72 people by Forbes Magazine.

The continent’s foremost billionaire is listed as the 68th most powerful person in the world, and is one of only two Africans to appear on this year’s list. Africa’s most powerful man is Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. He ranks 51st on the power list. According to the ranking of the World’s Most Powerful People, Dangote is the second most powerful man in Africa.

Russian President, Vladimir Putin is ranked number one on the list followed by President of United States, Barack Obama, Chinese President, Xi Jinping, Pope Francis and Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor.

The Magazine writing on Dangote stated, “heralded by some as the face of the new Nigeria, Africa’s richest man is looking beyond cement, sugar and flour — the three commodities that built his fortune — to the oil business. In April he announced $9 billion in financing from a consortium of local and international lenders to construct a private oil refinery and fertilizer and petrochemical complex in the country.”

It should be recalled that Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC) recently ranked Dangote as one of the 25 most influential people in the world in terms of having a profound impact on business and finance.

A CNBC spokesman said: “They have disrupted industries, sparked change and exercised an influence far beyond their own companies. As CNBC embarks on its second quarter-century, it faces a world completely altered from when it started.

In its latest survey CNBC, global financial and business outfit ranked Dangote as 23rd among the first 25 people who have impacted the business world most since 1989 . Apple Computers founder Steve Jobs topped the list followed by, Bill Gates, with other names on the list including Ben Bernanke, Alan Greenspan, Sergey Brin, Larry Page and Eric Schmidt.

Other notable names on the 25-man list included Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffet, Oprah Winfrey, Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Bogle, Larry Ellison, Rupert Murdoch, Jack Welch, Narayana Murthy, Howard Schuldt, Bernard Arnault and Li Ka-shing. Also on the list are Carl Icahn, Meg Whitman, Amancio Ortega, Michael Bloomberg, Sandy Weill, Cher Wang, Martha Stewart and Carlos Slim.

Influential persons

The TIME Magazine in 2013 named Dangote among the100 most influential persons on earth. Bill Gate, Microsoft Founder and Co-Chair, Bill and Melinda Gate wrote a tribute in honour of Dangote in commemoration of his listing by the Time magazine. Gate dwelled extensively on the philanthropic gestures of the President of the Dangote Group in the areas of health especially polio eradication and job creation efforts.

Gates, described him as a man who does good in addition to doing well. Wrote he: “… his business activities drive economic growth across the continent.

That’s impressive, but I know him best as a leader constantly in search of ways to bridge the gap between private business and public health. It’s for that reason he helped create the Nigeria Private Sector Health Alliance. And it’s for that reason he is an advocate for agricultural research and malaria control.”

Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world assembled by the American news magazine TIME. First published in 1999 as the result of a debate among American academics, politicians, and journalists, the list is now an annual event.

Although appearing on the list is often seen as an honor, TIME makes it clear that entrants are recognized for changing the world, regardless of the consequences of their actions