Dangote named among world’s ’50 most influential people’

Aliko Dangote, president of Dangote Group, has been listed by Bloomberg as one of the 50 most influential personalities in the world.

Dangote ranked 41st on the list, which comprises those who “build companies and assemble fortunes”.

“They run banks, or hope to disrupt them. They shape economies and spread ideas. They manage money and wield the clout that goes with the billions of dollars they invest,” the news outfit said of its choices.

Paul Wallace, a Bloomberg correspondent, described Dangote as a political and financial power broker.

“No African has ridden the continent’s halting march out of poverty toward potential prosperity as spectacularly as its richest person, the Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote,” he wrote.

“Dangote is feted like royalty. He has businesses ranging from cement to sugar to energy in a dozen sub-Saharan countries. He’s a fixture at elite gatherings such as the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

“Aliko Dangote, Founder, Dangote Group, Africa’s most successful businessman, built his fortune in sugar, textiles, and cement in his native Nigeria, where today, he is a political as well as a financial power broker. He is expanding in other countries and may list his cement company in London Stock Market.”

Mark Mobius, chairman of the emerging-markets group at Franklin Templeton Investments, said Dangote’s clout extends beyond the boardroom and the high-flier dinner circuit.

“In March, as votes were tallied in Nigeria’s presidential election, Dangote, 58, served as an intermediary between the camps of the incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan, and the ultimate winner of the election, Muhammadu Buhari. There’s no question that he is quite an exceptional person — not only in Africa but globally,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dangote has revealed that he does not have the intention of going into partisan politics.

Explaining that the set of skills required to become successful in business differ from those of politics, he maintained that business and politics should not be mixed together.

He made this known on Tuesday when he paid a visit to the Ikenne residence of the Awolowo family over the death of HID Awolowo, matriarch of the dynasty.

“I can’t be in politics because they say when you want to clap you need two hands,” he said.

“If all of us in business go into politics then who is going to create the jobs?

“We are in the private sector so we should be creating jobs. Government should be creating good policies and also ensuring that we are not taking advantage of the poor.

“They are doing what they know how to do best and we are also doing what we know how to do best. Each is a master in its own terrain.”

He advised Nigerians not to be discouraged by the fall in oil prices, saying the austerity measures adopted by the federal government would soon stabilise the economy.

“During the oil boom, when a barrel of oil sold above $100, there were too many leakages which the federal government is now trying to resolve by plugging them.

“When this is effectively achieved, I believe the economy will begin to regain its stability. However, we must begin to explore other avenues to wealth aside from crude oil, especially agriculture which we were formerly used to. We really should not be complaining.”

Dangote  also called on the federal government to implement policies that would attract investors, enable manufacturing sector to thrive and fast-track economic growth.

Femi Otedola, popular business mogul, was also in Dangote’s entourage.

Both men described the late HID Awolowo as a great woman whose name will forever remain immortalised in the nation’s history.