Nigeria’s Richest Man Aliko Dangote Explains Reason He Lost His Wealth After Elections
- Aliko Dangote, the president of Dangote Industries Limited, has opened up on the obstacles that his business faced in the past year
- According to Africa's richest man, the domestic operating environment was affected by the election year due to policy changes
- A breakdown of the financial year 2023 by the company shows its group turnover was N441.5 billion, 9.5% higher than the same period in 2022
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over three years of experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
Dangote Industries Limited's president, Aliko Dangote, stated that the company's largest obstacle in 2023 was local currency devaluation.
Source: UGC
He made this statement at the Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, April 30.
Dangote claimed that the 2023 election year saw a new administration sworn in on May 29, 2023, making the domestic operating environment difficult.
The business magnate added that many manufacturing firms were impacted by the changes in the value of the naira relative to the US dollar and that they had experienced operating losses.
He said:
“The biggest mess created was the naira devaluation from N460 to N1,400. You can see that almost 97% of companies in the food and beverage business will not pay dividends this year. But we will try and get out of it.”
How Dangote's wealth was impacted
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that South African billionaire Johann Rupert started the new year as the richest man in Africa, ahead of Aliko Dangote.
According to Forbes, Rupert's net worth as of Tuesday, January 2, 2024, stood at $10.3 billion, higher than Dangote's $9.5 billion.
According to Bloomberg, most of Dangote's fortune is derived from his 86% stake in publicly traded Dangote Cement, which was affected by the devaluating currency.
He holds the shares in the company directly and through his conglomerate, Dangote Industries.
Meanwhile, by the end of the first, Dangote regained the position of the riches of Africa after his wealth went up again.
Biggest companies affected
According to a report published in The Punch, four of Nigeria's most valuable companies—Dangote Group, Nestle Nigeria, and MTN Nigeria—lost N1.7 trillion in 2023 due to the naira's depreciation.
Based on an examination of their financial statements on the Nigerian Exchange Group website, the listed companies suffered enormous losses in the 2023 fiscal year, primarily from foreign exchange losses.
The biggest company in Nigeria, Dangote Industries, reported N164 billion in foreign exchange losses in its 2023 financial report.
The company said that its foreign businesses were the leading cause of the loss.
Dangote provided a breakdown of the financial year 2023 and stated that the company's group turnover was N441.5 billion, 9.5% higher than the N403 billion in the same period in 2022.
He added that the company made a significant effort to offset cost increases, as seen by the operational profit of N72.69 billion, or 16.5% of revenue, as opposed to N82.41 billion, or 20.4% of revenue.
Its pre-tax loss was N108.9 billion, and its post-tax loss was N73.8 billion. This was because it experienced a non-cash foreign currency loss of N171.4 billion.
Recurring PAT increased 78% to N97.66 billion after subtracting the non-cash foreign exchange loss.
The AGM resolved to ratify Mariya Dangote as a director of the firm and to designate Prof. Konyisola Ajayi, Benedickter Molokwu, and Maryam Bashir as the company's retiring directors.
Additionally, the directors' authorisation establishes the auditor's compensation and reveals the shareholders who voted on the managers' compensation.
Video shows Dangote Refinery rolling out diesel
Legit.ng reported that the Dangote Refinery began rolling out diesel to marketers at its Lekki, Lagos facility on Monday, April 15, 2024.
The refinery said it had commenced the distribution of diesel to registered marketers via land and sea, marking a significant development for Nigeria's fuel supply and the energy sector.
According to reports, IPMAN is championing the pricing challenge. They pointed out that imported diesel currently costs N1,250 per litre in Nigeria due to the resurgence of the naira.
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Source: Legit.ng
