Business

Meet 10 highest paid CEOs in Nigeria and their companies — they earn more than the President

Published

2 years ago

2022/07/21

People are always good company when they are doing what they really enjoy.
–Samuel Butler

The title of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) goes beyond the power it offers but comes with a fantastic monetary compensation package. Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Alphabet, Google’s parent company, was paid $280 million in 2019; making him one of the highest-paid CEOs in the United States (US) and the world overall. That is 1,085 times the compensation of the average Alphabet employee (about $258,000).

Even though payment for people occupying similar positions in Nigeria is not as much as Pichai’s, overseeing companies in Nigeria is a lucrative job in itself. Some of the highest-paid CEOs in Nigeria may have their positions referred with different titles such as President, Chief Executive, and Managing Director.

They earn almost five times higher than the president of Nigeria; at least based on the official monthly salary.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s official monthly salary is about N1,171,568. His four-year salary was estimated ti be about N56,235,280.00k.

5. Ravindra Singhvi – Dangote Sugar (N289.7m)

Ravindra Singh Singhvi is the Group Managing Director/CEO of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc. Prior to his appointment as the Group Managing Director on the 30^thof October 2020; he was the Ag. Managing Director. Mr Singhvi joined Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc as the Chief Operating Officer on 13^th August 2018.

Singhvi earned a sum of N289.7 million as remuneration in 2021, a significant increase compared to N134.6 million received in the previous year. He joined Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc as the Chief Operating Officer on 13th August 2018.

He has over 40 years of proven experience in leadership positions in Manufacturing and Processes in Sugar, Petrochemicals, Cement, Textiles products industries in India. Mr Singhvi is a Chartered Accountant with a background in Company Secretaryship and General Management.

Before joining Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, Mr Singhvi was the Managing Director & CEO of NSL Sugar Limited, Hyderabad, India, and Managing Director, EID Parry (1) Limited, Chennai, India, one of the top three sugar-producing companies in India.

4. Karl Toriola -MTN (N368m)

Karl Toriola is a Nigerian telecommunications engineer who is currently serving as MTN Nigeria Chief Executive.

According to reports, he earned N368 million in December 2021 from N567 million in December 2020. Meanwhile, Ferdinand Moolman now the Chief Risk Officer, MTN Group Ltd according to Nairametrics earned N586 million in 2019, about 2.5% higher than the amount he pocketed in 2018 which was N571 million while he was the Chief Executive of MTN Nigeria.

Toriola’s past experience in a non-executive capacity on boards of directors including serving as Chairman, MTN/Areeba Guinea; Non-Executive Director, Jumia Africa; Non-Executive Director, American Towers Uganda; and Non-Executive Director, MTN subsidiaries in Francophone West Africa.

He’s also the only Nigerian among the top 5 highest-paid CEOs or company directors in the country.

3. Khaled Abdel Aziz El Dokan – LAFARGE Cement (N391m)

Khaled Abdel Aziz El Dokani is Managing Dir/CEO at Lafarge Africa PLC. According to reports, he earned N391 million in December 2021 from N334 million in December 2020.

The resignation of Michel Puchercos from the Company as the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer led to the appointment of Khaled Abdelaziz El Dokani as the new Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer.

He joined LafargeHolcim in 2004. Prior to taking over this position, he was country CEO of Iraq in 2018-2019, Qatar in 2016-2018, Saudi Arabia between 2013-2016, vice president for Business Development and Strategy North America from 2010-2013, and CFO in Lafarge Algeria between 2004 – 2010.

2. Roger Brown – Seplat (N475m)

Roger Brown joined Seplat as Chief Financial Officer in 2013 and was appointed CEO in August 2020. With a background in finance, he is a qualified Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and also a member of Association of National Accountants of Nigeria.

According to ThisDay Brown earned a sum of N475 million as a salary in 2021, a decline compared to N484 million received in the previous year.

Mr. Brown has over 25 years’ experience in the financial sector, primarily focused on emerging markets with extensive experience in structuring energy and infrastructure transactions on the African continent. Prior to joining the Company, he held the position of Managing Director of Oil and Gas EMEA for Standard Bank Group.

The real competitive advantage in any business is one word only, which is “people”.
— Kamil Toume, Writer and thought leader

1. Michel Puchercos – Dangote Cement (N531m)

Michel Puchercos currently serves as the Managing Director/CEO of Dangote Cement. He was appointed to the position on the 1st of February 2020

According to BusinessDay, the Dangote Cement Director earned N531 million in December 2021 from N448 million in December 2020.

He has more than twenty (20) years’ experience in the cement industry, having served in various capacities at Lafarge including as the President & Chief Executive Officer of Lafarge Halla Cement from January 2009 to March 2016, Director of Strategy and Systems at Lafarge Gypsum from September 1998 till March 2003 and also as Chief Executive Officer of Bamburi Cement, Kenya, Hima Cement, Uganda and Chairman, Mbeya Cement, Tanzania from June 2005 till December 2008.

He served as the Group Managing Director and Country CEO of Lafarge Africa Plc, a company listed on Premium Board of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, from April 2016 till December 2019. He is a graduate of the Ecole Polytechnique (1976) and the Ecole Nationale du Génie Rural, des Eaux et des Forêts (1981).