Zimbabwe’s Rich List

Below is a list extracted from newzimbabwe and I do not believe it is very accurate. I am not sure if it is a current list or if it is outdated. I am sure there are numerous Zimbabweans worth more than £5 million who are not on the list. When I saw Benjani on the list I wondered what had happened to our football hero, Peter Ndlovu, what had happened to his wealth. I am sure if he had made significant investments he worth more than the £5 million. This list doesn’t include politicians, and white Zimbabweans so it is not a very conclusive list. I could think of a few people who should make the list, but I am not sure what exactly they are worth. With the recession and the Zimbabwean situation, it is difficult to judge people’s worth, many companies have gone bust and are underperforming at the moment, so that may be a reason why the list looks like this. Maybe this explains why Nigel Chanakira is only worth US$6 million. I guess if we had included politicians the list would have been more interesting.

If anyone has a more accurate list, please contribute.

Strive Masiyiwa

Strive Masiyiwa was born in 1961. He went to high school in Scotland; he gained a degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering (Cum Laude) at the University of Wales, returning to newly independent Zimbabwe in 1984, where he took a job with TelOne, Zimbabwe’s fixed telephone provider. He applied for the country’s first mobile-phone license yet had to fight all the way to the Supreme Court before he could connect his first subscribers in 1998. His privately held company, Econet Wireless, generates revenue of more than US$300 million a year, making it one of Africa’s five largest telecom companies. Econet’s operation includes cellular and fixed-line businesses in Zimbabwe, Burundi, Lesotho and Botswana. The company also owns a 3G license in New Zealand. In New Zealand, Econet will soon launch that country’s third GSM network. He also owns a cellular license in Kenya.

He is estimated to be worth US$65 million.

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Benjamin Mwaruwari

Is a footballer currently playing for Manchester City. He was born to parents of Malawian descent and has chosen to represent his nation of birth, Zimbabwe, internationally. Benjani began his career at Lulu Rovers and the University of Zimbabwe teams in Zimbabwe’s Division One and Air Zimbabwe Jets in the country’s Premier League in 1999. He moved to South African club Jomo Cosmos in 1999 where he met his mentor Jomo Sono, after impressing in the friendly match between South Africa and Zimbabwe that was played to commemorate the inauguration of Thabo Mbeki as the president of South Africa. He is worth an estimated £5 million plus or minus.

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Philip Chiyangwa

Born 1959 is the founder of the Affirmative Action Group, a chair of Native Africa Investments Limited. Philip Chiyangwa grew up in Chegutu town. He went to St Francis School. The maverick Philip Chiyangwa is a major shareholder in Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed concern Zeco Holdings, placing him among the country’s top businessmen. Philip Chiyangwa’s estimated worth is £15 million.

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Nigel Chanakira

At 41, is already a multi-million-dollar businessman and a distinguished corporate executive. He is the founder and director of Kingdom Financial Holding Limited (KFHL), which has operations in Zimbabwe, Malawi and Botswana. He was named young global leader by World Economic Forum in 2005. He is mulling listing on the New York Stock Exchange. Estimated net worth: £6 million plus.

Other Africans

Aliko Dangote is Nigeria’s richest man. He’s estimated to be worth US$8 billion. When converted, that amounts to one trillion naira, making him Nigeria’s first authentic trillionaire. Listed two years consecutively as Nigeria’s richest man, his net worth in 2005 was US$1,6 billion and US$4 billion in 2006, now he is valued at US$8 billion. Dangote made his name in commodity trading, especially sugar importation into Nigeria, which he admits he controls over 60 percent today.

Given the heavy demand by Nigeria’s soft drink industry, breweries and confectionery industries for sugar, he makes a killing by doing volume business and gaining advantages to undercut competitors. As a result of his enormous investment in the business and his transport haulage business, he can distribute his sugar faster, cheaper and at a uniform price nationwide which the competition cannot match.

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Cyril Ramaphosa (born November 17 1952) is a South African lawyer, trade union leader, activist, politician and businessman. He was born in Soweto, near Johannesburg, in what is now Gauteng Province. While Ramaphosa was previously a major figure in South African national politics, he has in recent years become a prominent figure in the business community. He is a billionaire by South African standards and estimated to have a personal fortune of over £100 million and still growing by the day.