Mohammed Dewji

Mohammed “Mo” Dewji, one of Africa’s youngest billionaires, wants to eradicate poverty in his home country of Tanzania. And for the past two decades, he’s plowed money into projects ranging from the distribution of mosquito nets to training young business people in finance.

Early in his career, Dewji joined MeTL Group, a family business founded in the 1970s by his father, where his initial focus was on creating affordable products for lower-income people in East Africa. MeTL is involved in a raft of industries, making Mo-branded products like cola and detergent as well as operating fuel and transport businesses. Dewji spent a 10-year stint as a local member of Parliament, during which time, he donated his own money to schools, wells, farming equipment and an eye care unit at a hospital.

In 2014, he launched the Mo Dewji Foundation, and since then it has funded more than $5 million in health, water, and education programs. In December, the foundation announced it had received more than 2,600 applications for its education initiative the Mo Scholars Program—a 65% increase on the year prior.

In 2016, Dewji pledged to donate “well above” half his net worth, which was estimated at more than $2 billion last year, saying: “All these material comforts that surround us are temporary accessories and this is why, I decided a long time ago that I do not need any more personal wealth.”