Donate NowNigeria has more billionaires than any other country in Africa. Many of Nigeria's wealthiest can trace their fortunes back to a small group of powerful elite. They call them "The Godfathers."
A group of governors, ministers, former presidents and oligarchs, the Godfathers are at the center of the complex web that is Nigeria's political and business landscape.
Julia Simon examines the relationship between Godfathers and wealth in Nigeria. She looks at Godfathers' pivotal role as gatekeepers of the rentier economy, and the way the country's natural resources are often redistributed through their hands.
She explores Nigeria's murky system of disguising assets, and why it’s virtually impossible to quantify the wealth of the elite.
