Who is the richest woman in Nigeria? These are the top 10 richest women in Nigeria? See Forbes top 10 list and Net Worths.
Did you know that over the centuries, women were not associated with riches nor wealth as such talk less of been rated as the richest woman in the country?
From the time of creation, the man was in charge until the woman was created and tagged a helper.
Only God knows who made that invisible law that is ever so binding, and as time passed, women supported men as they were supposed to but they were also pushed into the shadows.
The kitchen became their abode, childbearing became their main obligation more like primary assignment, and other house chores became duties and responsibilities.
Strong women were still not rated on the list of the richest women in the world, not to talk of one of them rated as the richest woman in Nigeria.
Not even the little amazons that came into the world through them and followed in their footsteps.
Defiance can never be flushed out completely and so a female child started it all. Child of an Amazon did not want the same pattern of life, she knew who she really was and what she was worth, hence, the birth of feminism which is almost becoming old as the earth.
The fierceness in women grows daily and we are not only talking about successful women thriving to be the richest woman in Nigeria but most importantly, one of the top 10 richest women.
Who Is The Richest Woman In Nigeria?
Some women today can still recall how less importance was tied to a female child, especially for some particular tribes in Nigeria.
Those tales have become somewhat extinct to an extent though not forgotten. Today, some tribes see the female child as an investment;
Despite all the truth is, the sex of a child does not determine what the child is to become.
For the fact that the baby is a ‘she’ does not mean the child cannot be successful and even become the richest woman in Nigeria.
1. Folorunsho Alakija
Just as Aliko Dangote is the richest man in Africa and in Nigeria, Folorunso Alakija is the richest woman in Nigeria.
So strong was this belief shared by Chief L. A. Ogbara as he held the new born baby girl in his arms.
He never knew she would be the richest woman in Nigeria, a position she also occupied the previous year, 2017; when she grew up.
On the 15th of July, 1951; a beautiful woman pushed a baby into the world at a specific place in Ikorodu, Lagos.
No one knew what she would become, it was not predicted she would become the richest woman in Nigeria when she was named Folorunsho.
At the age of 7 years, little Folorunsho crossed the border of Nigeria into the United Kingdom to begin her basic education at Dinorben School, which was located at Hafodinos Hall, Llangernyw, Wales.
In the year 1962, Folorunsho left her friends, who did not know she will later become the richest woman in Nigeria and came back to her motherland.
Primary school was fun, right? Why wouldn’t we do secondary school?
So it happened, she was carrying a lunch box to Muslim High School at Sagamu, Ogun state. Yea, the now richest woman in Nigeria had her secondary education.
Folorunsho wanted more of the international education and boarded a plane back to the United Kingdom for her secretarial studies at Pitman’s central college.
They say ‘while others slept the successful ones burn the midnight candle’
Folorunsho literally burnt the middle night candle when she joined the labour at the age of 23 as a Secretary at Sijuade Enterprises, Lagos.
Before she became the richest woman in Nigeria, she worked with money at the then First National Bank of Chicago (known as First City Monument Bank now) as a secretary too.
Love is accommodating and does not exclude anyone, not even the future richest woman in Nigeria and the second on the list of top ten richest African women.
Two years later, she fell in love with Lawyer Modupe Alakija enough to marry him and become Folrunsho Alakija.
As associated with females, including the richest woman in Nigeria, her love for fashion saw her in class at the American College at the same London.
Her quest for knowledge saw her attending lectures as a fashion student, not the richest Nigerian woman yet, at the Central School of Fashion.
Folorunsho Alkaija did not become the richest woman in Nigeria being an employee but an entrepreneur/employer.
A few years later, she was seen passing through the exit terminal at the Nigerian airport, she was back.
It did not come as a surprise when Supreme Stitches was founded, neither was it questionable when it expanded and had to be renamed Rose of Sharon House of Fashion in 1996.
Folorunsho Alakija baby steps on the path of success had become grown steps to becoming the richest woman in Nigeria.
The Rose of Sharon house of fashion was renamed Rose of Sharon Prints and promotions in the year 2001.
What made Folorunsho Alakija the richest woman in Nigeria was not only the fashion money but mainly the oil money, Famfa Oil.
She did have her tough times bringing that company up but today, she smiles when narrating the story. She is said to own a private jet that is worth over $40 million.
Dethroned Oprah Winfrey as the richest woman of Africa descent for a brief time to be ranked the 96th most powerful woman in the world in 2014, and 87th world’s 100 most powerful women by Forbes.
Her net worth is estimated to be over $1.5 billion.
Her net worth cannot be compared to that of the richest person in the world, she tops the list of Nigeria’s richest women.
ask again; who is the richest woman in Nigeria? It’s definitely none other than our own Folorunsho Alakija.
2. Hajia Bola Shagaya
Born on the 10th of October, 1959 to Emenike Mobo and Adut Makur, it could not be foreseen that she would be the next in line after the richest woman in Nigeria when she was baby Bola.
She had her secondary school education at Queens School, Ilorin, Kwara state. She later went on to study Economics at Ahmadu Bello University. Also, She has a degree in accountancy from Armstrong College.
Hajia Bola Shagaya joined the labour market through the audit department at the Central Bank of Nigeria.
There is uneasiness with being an employee when you know you want something much more, even if being the richest woman in Nigeria is not the goal; at least being on the list of elites is something.
Hajia Bola is on the list of the top 10 richest women in Nigeria as number 2 because of a decision she took 35 years ago when she became the sole distributor of Konica brand of photographic materials in West Africa.
Her seat as the next in line on the list of richest women in Nigeria is not only due to photographic materials, she has investments in real estate.
Yes! Oil money is involved; the second richest woman in Nigeria is the managing director of Practoil Limited, a company founded in 2005.
Hajia Bola has got something similar to the richest woman in Nigeria and that’s fashion.
She is a lover of fashion and arts and is a patron of the Fashion Designers Association of Nigeria.
She is married to Alhaji Shagaya, and is the CEO of Bolmus Group International.
Although not taking the lead on the list of richest women in Nigeria, she is said to be rated the 4th richest woman in Africa. Her net worth is said to be more than $500 million.
3. Diezani Alison Madueke
Some of the masses refer to her as ‘someone who takes things’. Here on my list, she is not excluded from the top 10 richest women in Nigeria.
A politician, as we all know; is said to be the first female president of Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Companies.
Her wealth source is majorly from oil. She was born on the 6th of December, 1960 in Port Harcourt to Chief Frederick Abiye Agama.
Diezani Alison Madueke left the shores of Nigeria to England and the United States of America. She returned with a Bachelor degree in Architecture and joined the labour market almost immediately.
In the year 1992, when Diezani was asked where she was working, she said “at the Shell Petroleum Development Corporation”.
7 years later, Diezani found love and got married to the retired Admiral Allison Madueke but the love for knowledge did not diminish.
She boarded a plane out of the country, in the year 2002, to obtain a masters degree from the Cambridge Judge Business School.
4 years later, mama came back to assume a higher position than the previous, Executive Director, in the same company.
She is not rated the richest woman in Nigeria yet but she was considered worthy enough to be kidnapped in 2008…it wasn’t a successful kidnap actually.
Despite being the first female to hold some important positions including the minister of petroleum resources in Nigeria, she comes in as the third richest woman in Nigeria.
Just like this woman, some of the world’s wealthiest men today have at one time engaged in politics or held political positions.
4. Daisy Danjuma
She is married to one of the richest men in Nigeria and has quite a number of companies in Nigeria to her name. Her net worth is estimated at above $400 million.
5. Stella Oduah-Ogiemwonyi
Stella Odua Ogiemwony was born after the Nigeria independence on the 5th of January, 1962 to Igwe D. O. Oduah.
She has a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and a master’s degree in business administration, which she obtained in the United States of America.
She returned to Nigeria in the year 1983 and joined the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation as an employee.
She later left the NNPC to establish her company, Sea Petroleum, and Gas Company Limited.
She is not the richest woman in Nigeria but is included in the list of top 10 richest women in Nigeria.
More List of Forbes Richest Women In Nigeria
I’ve given you a quick biography of 6 women in Nigeria who are filthy rich. Want to know the other 4 that made it to the list of top 10?
6. Florence Ita Giwa
Florence Ita Giwa was born on the 19th of February, 1946 in Atabong, Cross River. She obtained a degree from Kilburn polytechnic in London.
She is not the richest woman in Nigeria but is considered as one of the top 10 richest women in Nigeria.
Also Read: Who are the top richest musicians in Nigeria
7. Cecilia Ibru
Cecilia Ibru is a member of one of the richest families in Nigeria. She has got more than a million to her name as an Ex-managing director and chief executive officer of the then Oceanic bank.
She was born on the 22nd of March, 1946 to Edward and Victoria Sido. She attended the University Tutorial College at London in the year 1967.
Also, she graduated from the University of London in 1971 with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology.
Cecilia Ibru also has a master’s degree in Philosophy from the School of Oriental and African Studies.
She is an ex-convict of a fraud case in 2010. She was widowed 6 years later. She is not the richest female in Nigeria but is on this list as the 8th richest women in Nigeria.
8. Stella Chinyelu Okoli
The year 1944 recorded the birth of a baby girl, alongside other births, in Kano state.
Mr Felix Ebelechukwu and his wife, Magaret Modebelu celebrated the birth of their baby during her naming ceremony when she was named Stella.
Stella started her basic education at All Saint Primary School in the year 1954 and completed her secondary school at Ogidi Girls Secondary School in the year 1964.
She proceeded to the University of Bradford where she obtained a bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy.
She obtained her master’s degree in Biopharmaceutical from the University of London, Chelsea.
After that, she joined the labour market, working with Middlesex Hospital, Boots the Chemist Limited, and Pharma-deko.
Stella started her pharmaceutical shop, Emzor Chemists Limited, in Somolu, Lagos in the year 1977.
Today, that little establishment is no longer a shop but a multimillion dollar company; Emzor Pharmaceuticals – one of the giant companies in Nigeria.
She is not the richest Nigerian but is included in the list of top 10 richest women in Nigeria, with a net worth of over $400 million.
She is presently the vice president of Manufacturers Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mine, and Agriculture.
You’ll agree with me that she’s one of the most successful women in Nigeria, isn’t it?
9. Bimbo Alase
Bimbo Alase is also one of the richest Nigerians. Her wealth started growing from a furniture shop in June 1994. She attended Pitman College, London, and Regent Academy of Design and Fine Arts.
She later got a post-graduate degree in Interior design from a school in the same London.
Today her furniture business is not only just about furniture; it is an upgraded level of furniture business…no wonder she is included on the list of richest women in Nigeria. Her net worth is over $300 million.
Definitely, there are more females in Nigeria who are filthy rich. Linda Ikeji net worth, for example, will soon qualify her to be on this list.
Who Is The Richest Woman In The World
The richest woman in the world is none other than Alice Walton.
Just as every other child, she came out from a womb on the 7th of October, 1949 in Newport, Arkansas.
She also had prerequisite education before proceeding to Trinity University at San Antonio in Texas to acquire a bachelors degree in Economics and Finance…like she knew it would not only become handy but also play vital importance to her.
Upon completion of graduate studies, she joined the First Commerce Corporation as an equity analyst and money manager.
Ambition and hard work saw her alighting at the Arvest Bank Group and heading their investment activities. It did not end there, the tigress was a broker for EF Hutton.
The year 1988 saw her cutting the ribbon tied into a bow in front of her investment bank, Llama Company. Due to some reasons, she was seen taking down the company post in the late 1990s.
In the year 1998, she moved to a ranch within Texas and we heard it was named Walton’s rocking W Ranch.
On the ranch, she had space to nurture her love for horses. Again she was cutting ties; she put up the ranch for sale in 2015 and changed location to Fort Worth from Milsap to nurture another of her loves, arts.
Alice Walton was seen again cutting the ribbon tied into a bow in front of an art museum she founded, in the year 2011.
She called it the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art; located at Bentonville, Arkansas.
Married twice and divorced twice, she is still described as “the most like me-a maverick-but even more volatile than I am” by her father.
She is the only daughter of Walmart founder, Sam Walton and Helen Walton. She is not the richest woman in Nigeria but she is the richest woman in the world with a net worth of over $40 billion.
She is even ranked the 18th richest person in the World. The richest woman in the world is none other than Alice Walton.
Who Is the Richest Woman In Africa
So who is the richest black woman in Africa? Well, it might shock you to know that there is a female out there with a net worth that is over $2 billion.
Her source of wealth is majorly from investments, amongst other things like oil, diamonds…as in she plays hardball.
She started as a project manager engineer at the age of 24 but today at the age of 45; Isabel Kukanova Don Santos is rated as the richest woman in Africa.
Having a degree in Electrical engineering from King’s college at London; she was the first female billionaire in Africa…gratitude to her business mind.
The richest woman in Africa is Isabel Kukanova Don Santos, born on the 20th of April 1973 to President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos and Tatiana Kukanova in Baku, Soviet Union. She is a citizen of Angola.
The Richest Family In Nigeria
Imagine born into the richest family in Nigeria.
Make my head just pop out from the womb of any member of the Igbinedion or Folawiyo families…hmm, I die here ni o.
The IGBINEDION FAMILY is one of the richest families in Nigeria and is at the top of the list. The head of the family is the “Esama” of Benin, Chief Michael Igbinedion.
The origin of this family can be traced to the Edo state. The same family has produced an Ex-governor, a law maker representative in the House of Representatives.
The family wealth is tied to investments in real estate, etc. When it comes to trendy fashion styles, they also rock it.
FOLAWIYO FAMILY is also on this list of richest families in Nigeria. Thanks to Chief Wahab Folawiyo who founded the Yinka Folawiyo and Sons upon his return to Nigeria in 1951 after completion of his studies at University of North London.
The Folawiyo and Sons have spread its tentacles into agriculture, energy, shipping, and real estate and still has the counting money machine working for them.
These two families tops the table but can any of these families compete with the richest football players in Nigeria? I think you should check that out and let’s have your comments.
Richest Woman In Nigeria (Summary)
The truth is many of us, if not all, thrive to be something better than what we were before; even if been the richest woman in Nigeria is not what we all dream of.
The bitter truth is we also ignore character especially those of us who have always seen the worst days and acquisition of wealth weighs much more than all other things. No judgement, there.
Many might define the richest woman in Nigeria by the number of materials, valuables, assets, liabilities; she has…still who is one to slam the hammer on the board?
Let us bear in mind that through success, wealth, and riches are most times used interchangeably there is a thin line between them.
This line does get blurry and at times erased, albeit little there is actually a difference between them.
The difference between success, riches, and wealth is determined by its definer; success is big with almost no fences.
Here on this page, right now, we rate the richest woman in Nigeria as being successful because of her abundance of wealth in the parameters given.
So, do you agree with what we have on this list of the richest woman in Nigeria? We await your beautiful comment in the box provided below.