Highest Paid CEOs in Nigeria in 2021

Meet the 10 highest Paid CEOs in Nigeria in 2021

Becoming a CEO of a multinational company is not an easy task.

However, when one makes it to the top the benefits are mouth-watering.

A clear example is the life and paycheck of the highest paid CEOs in Nigeria

To build a multinational company takes effort. But it equally take so much resources. Many people want to build brands that can trade globally and last for decades and maybe centuries. But the question is, are they ready to pay the price that comes with it? The truth is that businesses don’t just become a success on their own. It takes efforts to make it happen. More importantly it takes people to make it happen.

People are the most important component and resources a company needs to succeed.

It is people that make decisions. They enact policies. They develop strategies. It is equally people that drive sales. And they also manage every other resources available to the company.

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The CEO – The Most Important Person

Talking about people. They operate at various cadre in an organization. And they are equally tasked with different responsibilities. But the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) also known as the Managing Director (MD) is the highest position in any organization. And he/she is usually faced with the responsibility of making the hardest decisions in the company.

They are generally have the task and responsibilities of overseeing the overall growth and sustainability of the company. To make this happen they have to formulate policies, develop strategies and take very tough decisions.

When the company is doing well they take the credit. And when the company is under-performing they cannot run away from the blame. For the huge responsibilities they weigh on their shoulders it is understandable that they are usually the highest paid in any company.

Due to the sensitivity of the role, companies go a long way in attracting the best hands for the job. And when you attract the best you need to do your all you can to keep them. And one way of keeping them is through very attractive and competitive pay.

Highest Paid CEOs in Nigeria for 2021

Below is a list of the ten highest paid CEOs in Nigeria according to a report by Nairametrics and verified from the audited accounts of those companies from the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

The data was sourced from the published audited accounts of the companies and verified by Nairametrics Research.

1. Michel Puchercos (Dangote Cement) – N531 million

**Michel Puchercos the CEO of Dangote Cement is the highest paid CEO in Nigeria 2021**

Mr Michel Pucheros, who was formerly with Lafarge Africa, earned a sum of N531 million from Dangote Cement in the year 2021. He is the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the most capitalized manufacturing company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
He was appointed to the position effective January 2020, after resigning from Lafarge Africa in the same year.
According to information on the website of Dangote Cement, Michel has more than 20 years of experience in the cement industry having served in various capacities at Lafarge.
He served as the President & Chief Executive Officer of Lafarge Halla Cement; Director of Strategy and Systems at Lafarge Gypsum.
He also served as the Chief Executive Officer of Bamburi Cement and Hima Cement; and Chairman of Mbeya Cement in Tanzania.
He resigned from Lafarge in January 2020 to join a competitor brand, Dangote Cement Plc and was succeeded by Mr Khaled Abdelaziz El Dokani, the former country CEO of Lafarge Holcim Iraq.
Dangote Cement recorded a 32% year-on-year growth in profit after tax to N364.4 billion, compared to N276.1 billion recorded in the previous year. This implies that the cement giant posted the highest net profit in 2021 compared to other companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

2. Roger Brown (Seplat Energy) – N475 million

**Roger Brown of Seplat Energy is the 2nd highest paid CEO in Nigeria in 2021**

Roger Brown assumed the role as the Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Energy on 1st August 2020, following the retirement of Austin Avuru. Roger Brown earned a sum of N475 million as salary in 2021, a decline compared to N484 million received in the previous year.
Brown joined Seplat as Chief Financial Officer in 2013. With a background in finance, he is a qualified Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and also a member of the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria.
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.
In the year under review the oil company posted a profit after tax of N46.93 billion, an overturn from the loss of N30.71 billion recorded in 2020.

3. Mr. Karl Toriola (MTN Nigeria) – N368 million

**Karl Toriola of MTN is 3rd on the list of highest paid CEOs in Nigeria**

Karl Toriola received a sum of N368 million as remuneration in 2021, this is a decline compared to the N567 million earned by the former MD, Ferdinand Moolman in 2020. It is worth noting that Karl Toriola is the only Nigerian on the top five list for 2021.
He joined MTN Nigeria as Chief Technical Officer in 2006 before holding various positions across the MTN Group. He has over 24 years’ experience from serving at MTN Group, WECA region; MTN Cameroon and before life in MTN, he worked at Vmobile Nigeria; Ericsson Nigeria & AG Switzerland.
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronic and Electrical Engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, and a Master of Science degree in Communication Systems from the University of Wales, Swansea, UK.
He has also completed several programmes at INSEAD, Singapore; Wharton Business School, USA; London Business School, UK; Harvard Business School, USA; and Institute of Management Development (IMD), Switzerland.
He is a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (FNSE) as well as a member of the Council of Registered Engineers of Nigeria (COREN) and the Institute of Directors (IoD).
MTN Nigeria posted a profit after tax of N298.65 billion in 2021, which is 45.5% higher than the N205.21 billion posted in the previous year.

4. Mr. Ravindra Singhvi (Dangote Sugar) – N289.7 million

Ravindra Singhvi is the MD of Dangote Sugar and is among the highest paid CEOs in Nigeria — **Ravindra Singhvi is the MD of Dangote Sugar**

Mr 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 30th of October 2020; he was the Ag. Managing Director.
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, textile products industries in India. Mr. Singhvi is a Chartered Accountant with a background in Company Secretaryship and General Management.
He possesses a Bachelor’s Degree in B.Com (Hons) from the University of Jodhpur, India.
Prior to 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.
Dangote Sugar recorded a 25.9% year-on-year decline in its profit after tax to N22.05 billion from N29.78 billion recorded in the previous year.

5. Mr Khaled Abdel Aziz El Dokani (Lafarge Africa) – N288.6 million

**Khaled Abdel is one of the highest paid CEOs in Nigeria**

Khaled is the MD/CEO of Lafarge Africa, a position he occupied from January 2020 after the former MD, Mr. Michel Puchercos resigned from his position. Khaled received a sum of N288.62 million as salary for the 2021 financial year compared to N221.22 million received in the previous year.
In addition to his salaries, he received N102.82 million as other benefits in the same year, bringing his total earnings for the year to N391.43 million as against the N334.89 million he received in 2020.
In terms of the financial performance of the company, Lafarge Africa printed a profit after tax of N51 billion in 2021, a 65.4% increase compared to N30.84 billion recorded in the preceding year.
Khaled Abdelaziz El Dokani joined LafargeHolcim in 2004. Prior to his current position, he was Country CEO of Iraq (2018-2019), Qatar (2016-2018), Saudi Arabia (2013–2016), Vice-President for Business Development and Strategy North America (2010-2013), and CFO in Lafarge Algeria (2004 – 2010).
He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Alexandria University, Egypt.

6. Ebenezer Onyeagwu (Zenith Bank) – N246 million

Ebenezer Onyeagwu - Current MD of Zenith Bank — **Ebenezer Onyeagwu – Current MD of Zenith Bank**

Ebenezer Onyeagwu is the CEO of Nigeria’s tier-1 bank Zenith Bank Plc.
Mr. Onyeagwu is a graduate of Accounting from Auchi Polytechnic where he obtained the Ordinary National diploma in 1984 and Higher National Diploma in 1987.
He has nearly 30 years’ experience in the banking industry in Nigeria.
Ebenezer joined Zenith Bank Plc in 2002 as a Senior Manager, in the Internal Control and Audit Group of the bank.
He was named Executive Director of the bank in 2013, and put in charge of Lagos and South-South Zones.
He took over the reins as MD/CEO from Peter Amangbo with effect from June 1, 2019.
In 2021 his total remuneration was N246 million