September 26, 2020
By Paschal IJEH InvestAdvocate
Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest person and chairman of Dangote Group, an industrial conglomerate in Africa has commended Tony Elumelu, Chairman of Africa’s global bank, The United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) and Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc, Nigeria’s leading conglomerate for been named in the Time100” List of the 100 Most Influential People in the World 2020.
“A mere handshake says a lot about Tony Elumelu. His gritty grip underlines his charming, tenacious personality: a man who hardly backs down from any challenge. The same engaging qualities have propelled him from a modest beginning in Nigeria to becoming chair of the United Bank of Africa, and one of the most innovative and ambitious business leaders of his generation,” Dangote wrote in the Time Magazine published on September 22, 2020.
He described Elumelu as a leading proponent of “Africapitalism,” a belief that Africa’s private sector can and must play a leading role in the continent’s development through long-term investments, as well as entrepreneurship and regional connectivity.
According to Dangote, after deepening the financial market in Africa, Elumelu has found an equally important niche: giving a voice of hope to millions of youths across Africa. “Tony has harnessed Africa’s youth bulge to catalyze development and protect the future, committing to investing $5,000 each in 1,000 young entrepreneurs per year across 54 countries in Africa. Having come so far, Tony still forges on, striking a fine balance between personal satisfaction and societal impact,” Dangote added.
Earlier last week, Elumelu, Chairman of Africa’s global bank, UBA Plc was named by TIME in the 2020 TIME100 annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Elumelu who was years back referred to as ” The Whizkid of the Nigerian Banking Industry” has expanded his business acumen beyond the shores of Nigeria, and has gone ahead to empower young African entrepreneurs through The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) which he created in 2010 and has thus far empowered close to 10,000 new generation of African entrepreneurs, catalysing economic growth, driving poverty eradication and ensuring job creation across all 54 African countries; earmarking $100 million to this cause.
Elumelu, apart from UBA Plc and Transcorp Plc, he is also the Founder and Chairman of Heirs Holdings, his family owned investment company, committed to improving lives and transforming Africa, through long-term investments in strategic sectors of the African economy, including financial services, hospitality, power, energy and healthcare. Transcorp subsidiaries include Transcorp Power, one of the leading generators of electricity in Nigeria and Transcorp Hotels Plc, Nigeria’s foremost hospitality brand.
