These four men are richer than half of Africa

Inequality is growing in Africa like nowhere else, with the top four billionaires being richer than half the continent's population, the NGO Oxfam highlighted in a report published Thursday. More than a third of the continent's population lives below the extreme poverty line—460 million people, according to the World Bank—and the number of poor people continues to rise.

"Four of Africa's richest billionaires now hold a fortune of $57.4 billion, more than the combined wealth of 750 million people, or half the continent's population," explains Oxfam. According to the ranking compiled by Forbes magazine earlier this year, the continent's top four billionaires are Nigerian Aliko Dangote (cement, sugar, fertilizers, etc.), South Africans Johann Rupert (luxury goods) and Nicky Oppenheimer (diamonds), and Egyptian Nassef Sawiris (industry and construction).

The NGO explains that the widening inequality is largely linked to a lack of political will on the part of African leaders, who maintain tax systems that favor the richest and are inefficient. "Wealthy individuals who invest their wealth in corporate structures and transfer their capital abroad (...) see their fortunes multiply without being taxed proportionally," Oxfam describes.

The NGO points out that Africa is the only region in the world where countries have not increased effective tax rates since 1980. According to the organization, taxing the richest Africans 1% more on their assets and 10% more on their income would help finance access to education and electricity on the continent. African governments "are on average among the least committed to reducing inequality," Oxfam estimates.

"Research by Oxfam shows that more than three-fifths of the wealth of the world's billionaires comes from cronyism, corruption, abuse of monopolistic power and inheritance," which is "particularly true in Africa."

"Africa's wealth is not lacking, it is being squandered by a rigged system that allows a small elite to amass immense fortunes while depriving hundreds of millions of people of the most basic services," said Fati N'zi-Hassane, Oxfam's Africa director, denouncing this "political failure" in a statement.

"Extreme inequality threatens to undermine democracy, hinder poverty reduction and growth, exacerbate the climate crisis, exacerbate gender and other injustices (...) and lead to the denial of basic rights and dignity of ordinary citizens," the NGO said. The report was released on the opening day of the biannual meeting of the African Union, which has pledged to reduce inequality by 15% on the continent over the next decade.