February 28, 2019, is a good/bad day for Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote. Today, Bloomberg ranked him higher in the world ranking of wealthiest men.

His wealth rose by $6.5 billion to $16.5 billion taking him a step further from his African follower, Mike Adenuga, the discreet head of telecom operator Globalcom. 

Another good news is that currently, Dangote Cement, which is the flagship of his empire, recorded strong consolidated performances in 2018. Sales reached a record NGN901.2 billion ($2.5 billion); an 11.8% rise year on year. Its net profit rose to NGN390.3 billion against NGN204.2 billion in 2017. However, this is a unique situation marked by a write-back of about NGN90 billion tax for an NGN89 billion extra payment in 2017.

In the category of bad news, Dangote Cement must split with his financial manager Brian Egan. The Irish announced his resignation with immediate effect on February 27, 2019. Officially, he wants to spend more time with his family.

Let’s note that though the group’s pan African operations recorded a surplus operating profit, the segment remains the weak link of Dangote Group. The loss of African subsidiaries rose in 2018 to reach NGN87.8 billion. This is due to a sharp increase in the financial burden. It is still difficult to know whether it is connected to the financial director’s resignation.

Idriss Linge