Rabat – Africa has only 20 billionaires, and Morocco’s Aziz Akhannouch and Othman Benjelloun are among them.
Forbes, an American business magazine, released its 2020 fact sheet on Africa’s richest people on January 17.
Only eight of Africa’s 54 countries are home to billionaires.
Egypt and South Africa lead the pack with five billionaires each, followed by Nigeria with four and Morocco with two. The remaining four African billionaires are scattered across Algeria, Angola, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe.
Akhannouch and Benjelloun, two high-profile Moroccan businessmen, appear frequently on the magazine’s various wealth rankings.
With a total combined net worth of $3.1 billion, Akhannouch and Benjelloun have $86 for each of Morocco’s 35.74 million citizens.
Aziz Akhannouch
Akhannouch, Morocco’s Minister of Agriculture, ranked 15th on the list with his estimated net worth of $1.7 billion.
The minister’s wealth is diversified but highly concentrated in petroleum, gas, and chemicals, given his role as the CEO of Akwa Group.
Akwa is a multibillion-dollar conglomerate company operating mainly in the oil and gas industry. His father Ahmed Ouldhadj Akhannouch co-founded the company in 1932.
Akwa Group’s leading petrol subsidiaries include Afriquia Gaz, Maghreb Oxygene, and Afriquia SMDC. Akwa also operates in the telecommunications, tourism, hotels, and real estate sectors.
Akhnnouch found himself at the center of a self-inflicted backlash in 2019 after saying in December that Moroccans should “discipline” people who lack respect for the kingdom and its institutions.
Akhannouch also angered Moroccans in October of the same year when he jokingly told the governor of Midelt province, central Morocco, that the prices of local apples are “too low.”
Othman Benjelloun
Benjelloun, 87, is the oldest billionaire on the list and ranks 17th in wealth. The CEO of BMCE Bank of Africa and president of the FinanceCom group has an estimated net worth of $1.4 billion.
BMCE is one of Morocco’s largest banks and has branches in over 20 African countries, including Senegal, Kenya, and Congo.
Benjelloun also acquired a stake in French telecommunications firm Orange, one of the three leading telecommunication companies in Morocco.
Benjelloun is at the helm of the $500 million Mohammed VI Tower project in Rabat’s twin city Sale, aspiring to make Morocco home to the tallest building in Africa.
Read also: Forbes Names Othman Benjelloun the Richest Man in Morocco
