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Africa's Later-In-Life Millionaires [Ventures Africa](Ventures Africa Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) VENTURES AFRICA – Africa is currently seen as an emerging market because of its growing middle class, which brings with it consumerism. A growing middle class will boost many economies on the continent. But in most cases people talk about the middle class and it seems that they have forgotten that the number of millionaires is also rapidly rising on the continent. With most nurturing their million dollar passion from an early age, others have struggled to see the financial returns banked till the later years, making up the growing list of later-in-life millionaires. In this article will look at African millionaires that became such later in their lives. Phuthuma Nhleko Phuthuma Nhleko, the former CEO of MTN, Africa's biggest mobile phone operator, became a millionaire late in life when he was appointed to the position of Group CEO of MTN, a position which paid him millions in total annual packages and share options. Born in 1960, Nhleko is a South African businessman and chairman and one of the founding members of Worldwide African Investment Holdings (WAIH), an investment holding firm. This company has shareholdings in telecommunications, petroleum and ICT sectors. The company has grown so fast that it now has investments worth of more than R3.5 billion ($317mn). Nhleko’s is a BSc (civil engineering) graduate from Ohio State University in the US. He also holds an MBA in finance from Atlanta University, also in the US. Khanyi Dhlomo Though young in terms of age (she was born in 1974), Khanyi Dhlomo became a millionaire later in life after having worked as a newscaster for SABC, Africa's biggest news broadcaster, and editing popular women's magazine, True Love, for many years. She became a millionaire after she launched Ndalo Media in 2007 which publishes lifestyle magazines and other travel rags, including Sawubona, which is distributed to passengers of the South African Airways (SAA). After her failed marriage, Dhlomo moved to France where she worked as country manager for South Africa's Tourism Board in Paris. In 2007 she graduated from Harvard Business School with an MBA which is where she met her husband Chinezi Chijioke and Jonathan Newhouse, Chairman of Condé Nast Publications (publisher of Vogue magazine). The two gave Dhlomo insights into the workings of the magazine business. Almost two years ago, she founded Luminance, a high street fashion start-up, which has been doing well ever since it was formed. She got a R34 million ($3 million) loan for the launch of this business from the government's venture capitalist, the National Empowerment Fund (NEF). It is believed that Dhlomo has already paid off the loan. Irene Charnley Irene Charnley did not want to age while working for the labour movement in South Africa. That is most probably the reason she jumped ship and joined MTN after 13 years as the lead negotiator at the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), which was South Africa's biggest union at the time. She was born in South Africa in 1960. At the onset of black economic empowerment (BEE), the South African government policy aimed at redressing economic imbalances in South Africa, many trade unionists joined the business sector and became multi-millionaires. She was of these people. Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa and the ANC's deputy president, is one of those trade unionists. But Charnley left MTN under controversial circumstances when her net worth was estimated to be more than $100 million. Charnley is currently the CEO of Mauritius-based, Smile Telecoms, which is a low-cost operator of telecommunications products. Tabitha Karanja The more mature and smiling Kenyan woman, Tabitha Karanja, became the first female brewer in Kenya and thereby becoming a millionaire later in her life.That she became a millionaire late in her life is evidenced by talk that she had a rough and turbulent time since 1997 when she decided to get into the wine industry. For more than two dozen years, Karanja fought pitched battles with huge multinationals in the cartel-controlled wines industry. According to Karanja, she had been pressured and almost threw in the towel as some quarters in this industry attempted to pull her down with smear campaigns. But this motivated her and even made her strong and ready to venture into any business. Karanja is currently the CEO of Keroche Breweries, which was formed in 1997. Keroche Breweries started as a small family business, a result of a market survey conducted by the Founders Mr. & Mrs. Tabitha Karanja on opportunities available in manufacturing market then. The market research revealed a gap in the liquor market that was to later to turn out to be "jealously guarded" market by a multinational for over 80 years. The research further revealed a unique trend that for all these years was ignored: the lower end of the market. According to United Nations statistics then, 56 percent of Kenyans lived below the one dollar a day poverty mark which simply meant a huge population was not targeted by the existing multinationals. This fact would then reveal why the illicit brew industry thrived much as people went for the cheap although dangerous brews not only because of lack of funds but also lack of choice. This would form the entry base for Keroche Breweries Limited in the Kenyan liquor market. All this has made her an African millionaire of note, though she became a millionaire later in life. (c) 2014 Ventures Africa. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |