…Says ADF spends over ₦50 billion yearly on ‘Giving Back to Africa’
Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Aliko Dangote Foundation (ADF) and President/CEO of Dangote Industries Limited, has been named to the inaugural 2025 TIME100 Philanthropy list. This prestigious list recognizes the 100 most influential global leaders shaping the future of philanthropy, with Dangote as the only Nigerian included.
Published by TIME magazine on Tuesday, the list features Dangote alongside other philanthropic titans like Michael Bloomberg, Oprah Winfrey, Warren Buffett, and Melinda Gates.
Dangote’s foundation reportedly spends an average of $35 million (over ₦50 billion) annually on programs across Africa, focusing on nutrition, health, education, and economic empowerment. Since endowing the foundation with $1.25 billion in 2014, Dangote’s philanthropic footprint has grown significantly.
Among notable initiatives, the foundation is leading a $100 million multi-year effort to combat severe childhood malnutrition. Additionally, an earlier vaccine partnership involving ADF contributed to the World Health Organization’s 2020 declaration that polio was eradicated in Africa.
Education remains a core priority. Dangote recently donated $10 million to the Aliko Dangote University of Science and Technology in Kano State. The foundation’s past contributions include a ₦1.2 billion hostel donated to Ahmadu Bello University, the largest individual donation to a Nigerian university to date.
Through programs like Mu Shuka Iri (“Let’s Plant a Seed”), local women are trained as Montessori-style educators, expanding access to early childhood education in Kano. The foundation also supports vocational training, scholarships, and annual fellowships via the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders program.
Reflecting on his legacy, Dangote said, “My mother instilled in me the ethos of giving back, which inspired my philanthropy 30 years ago. I want to be known not just as Africa’s richest person but also as its biggest philanthropist.”
