TOP TEN HIGHEST PAID PRESIDENTS.

Being a president is a very important job, and should naturally command a salary that is proportionate to its weight. The highest-paid presidents in Africa, therefore, receive very good remunerations; so as to enable them to concentrate on the job of nation-building with which they are saddled.

Interestingly, many people in Africa want to know how much their presidents earn. This is because these figures have for a long time been shrouded in secrecy; protected as state secrets.

However, because there can be no development without accountability; there is a strong need to make these figures available, so as to reduce the incidences of corruption, and to reduce the tensions that can be triggered when a leader is thought to have criminally enriched himself.

Who are the highest-paid presidents in Africa? Politics is a very lucrative business all over the world, but perhaps there is no place in the world where this is more evident than in Africa. The Political elites of Africa are among the highest-paid public servants in the world. Some African states spend so much on maintaining the lavish lifestyles of their top government officials that there is very little left for the people to survive on.

Top 10 Highest Paid Presidents in Africa.

King Mohammed VI’s palace has a daily operating budget of $960,000. Every year the state pays 2.576 billion Dirhams to the palace; this covers staff salaries, clothes, cars, as well as maintenance of equipment.

3. Cyril Ramaphosa (About $223,500 yearly)

Cyril Ramaphosa is the President of South Africa. He is also a businessman and for a time he was a labour leader. Cyril Ramaphosa is worth an estimated $500 million, and so his wealth does not depend on his position as president. He is one of the richest persons in South Africa, and one of the most powerful on the continent.

He is an astute politician and businessman; Cyril Ramaphosa is a wealth builder.

4. William Ruto (President of Kenya)

President William Ruto is the President of Kenya. With an annual salary of $192,200, Ruto is one of the highest-paid presidents in Africa; and with an estimated $2.5 billion, his family is among the richest in the country.

He is one of the richest people in the country. Even though there is still time for Ruto to prove his political mettle by initiating some long-lasting reforms, he has already proved himself as an astute investor and businessman.

5. Yoweri Museveni (Uganda)

Gen. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni is the leader of Uganda; a position he has held since 1986. He earns an annual salary of $183,216, earning him a place among Africa’s highest-earning presidents.

6. Abdelmadjid Tebboune (Algeria)       

Abdelmadjid Tebboune has been president of Algeria since 2019. He presently earns $168,000 per year as the president of the country; and has also held other sensitive positions in the country such as Minister of Defense, Prime Minister, and Minister of Housing. Abdelmadjid Tebboune is the most powerful man in Algeria, and one of the most powerful persons on the continent.

He has instituted wide-reaching reforms all over the country, aimed at turning Algeria into one of the biggest economies in the world. Abdelmadjid Tebboune has unified the country and set it up on the right path.

His salary of $168,000 per year is quite modest for a country like Algeria, which is considered quite wealthy by African standards.

7. Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (President of Equatorial Guinea)

President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has been president of Equatorial Guinea since August 1979. He earns $152,680 per year as president of the country; making him one of the highest-paid presidents in Africa. Equatorial Guinea has a good economy; the major export is petroleum, but the country also has many other exports in varying quantities.

The country has a GDP per capita of $7,143; which is quite good by African standards, and there are other presidents earning far more than Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. Furthermore, after more than 30 years in office, he could have increased his salary if he wanted to.

Equatorial Guinea enjoys a rather high quality of life; this is considered one of the richest African countries.

8. Emmerson Mnangagwa              

Emmerson Mnangagwa has been president of Zimbabwe since 24 November 2017. He earns $146,590 per year in his position as president; making him one of the top-earning African leaders. He presides over a small country with a population of about 14 million people and a GDP per capita of $1,128. The country has a diversified economy that has plenty of potential for growth.

9. Azali Assoumani (President of Comoros)

Azali Assoumani, 59 years old is the president of one of Africa’s poorest and unpopular countries, Comoros since 2016. Prior to then, he has served the country from 1999 to 2006. The president made it to the list despite the fact that the people of the country are not finding it so easy. Azali Assoumani earns about $115,000 every year putting him on the eight spots on the list.

10. Hage Geingob, (President of Namibia)

Denis Sassou has been president of Congo since 1997. As president he earns $108,400 annually, making him a big earner as far as the presidents of Africa are concerned. 

Story courtesy