My Father Wills One-Third of Wealth to Charity – Halima Dangote Reveals
Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has committed one-third of his wealth to charity as part of his succession plan, according to his daughter, Halima Dangote.
Halima, a trustee of the Aliko Dangote Foundation, disclosed the arrangement in an interview with Bloomberg published on Tuesday, saying the billionaire had secured the support of his family to dedicate 33 per cent of his estate to philanthropic causes.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Dangote’s net worth is estimated at $35.1 billion, meaning one-third of his fortune would amount to approximately $11.7 billion if maintained at its current value.
Halima said philanthropy is central to her father’s legacy and has been incorporated into the family’s long-term succession plans.
She explained that Dangote had already donated 25 per cent of his wealth to the Aliko Dangote Foundation, while the remaining commitment reflects the Islamic principle under Sharia law that permits a person to bequeath up to one-third of their estate to charitable causes.
“He put structures in place to ensure we focus on health and education. The 33 per cent commitment is important because philanthropy must continue from one generation to another,” she said.
According to her, Dangote asked his daughters and mother to endorse the will to ensure the pledged portion of his estate is dedicated to humanitarian causes.
Founded in 1994, the Aliko Dangote Foundation is one of Africa’s largest private charitable organisations.
Halima said the foundation received an endowment of $1.25 billion about a decade ago and has since attracted an additional $700 million in funding.
She noted that about 70 per cent of the foundation’s spending is invested in programmes across Nigeria, while 20 per cent supports projects in other African countries and the remaining 10 per cent funds initiatives in other parts of the world.
The foundation focuses on health, education, nutrition and humanitarian assistance. Its interventions include partnerships with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and state governments in northern Nigeria that contributed to the eradication of wild poliovirus in Africa.
Dangote’s planned donation is expected to rank among the largest philanthropic commitments ever made by an African billionaire, although it falls below the 50 per cent threshold associated with the global Giving Pledge.
Earlier this year, TIME magazine named Dangote among the world’s most influential philanthropists in its inaugural TIME100 Philanthropy list, recognising the Aliko Dangote Foundation’s charitable programmes, which reportedly spend more than ₦50 billion annually on projects across Africa.
