A quarter of the tycoons who werer featured on last year’s inaugural FORBES list of the 40 Richest Africans failed to make it back this year.
The reasons vary. For one, we’ve had access to new information, as in the case of Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Kenya’s first president. Kenyatta is an heir to one of Kenya’s largest land holdings. Between him and his family, they own over 500,000 acres of Kenyan land easily worth hundreds of millions of dollars. But here’s the problem: The Kenyatta family is a very large one and it’s not certain at the moment that Uhuru, who aims to become president during the country’s elections next year, is the principal custodian of these assets. Hence, he’s been dropped off the list.
Mohamed Al Fayed, an Egyptian billionaire, failed to make it primarily because he doesn’t live in Africa. Al Fayed’s assets are mostly in the UK, and he lives there. We narrowed the criteria to make the FORBES list this year: it is restricted to Africans who live in Africa.
For the 2012 list of Africa’s 40 Richest, click here.
As for the other eight, they were simply not rich enough this year. Last year, the minimum net worth neeede to make the list was $250 million. This year, that minimum jumped to $400 million, leaving off many at who were at the bottom of the 2011 list.
These are the 10 who dropped off the 2012 list:
Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya
Source of wealth: Land
The son of Kenya’s first president, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta is a heir to some of the largest land holdings in Kenya. The Kenyatta family of which he is a key member, owns over 500,000 acres of prime Kenyan land, along with other assets such as a stake in the Commercial Bank of Africa, a dairy company and a television station. He dropped off due to uncertainty over who in his family is the chief custodian of the vast land holdings.
Mohammed Al-Fayed, Egypt
Source of wealth: Retail
Mohamed Al Fayed sold the famed Harrod’s department store in London to Qatar Holding in 2010 for a reported $2.4 billion. He’s a billionaire, but he lives in the UK and most of his assets are outside Africa. FORBES narrowed the criteria for making the Africa List this year to citizens of African countries who live in Africa.
Chris Kirubi, Kenya
Source of wealth: Real Estate, Manufacturing
The flamboyant Kenyan tycoon owns a significant stake in the landmark International House Limited building in Nairobi. He owns a 49% stake in Tiger Haco Industries, a leading manufacturer of cosmetics in Kenya. He’s also the largest individual shareholder in Centum Limited, a Nairobi Stock Exchange-listed investment firm. His net worth last year was $300 million –not enough to make the 2012 list.
Paul Harris, South Africa
Source of wealth: Banking
Paul Harris is a former CEO of Rand Merchant Bank, one of South Africa’s largest financial institutions. He was listed as the 40th richest African last year with a net worth of $250 million. This year, the minimum net worth to get on the list is $400 million. Harris misses the cut.
Source: Forbes
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