Unsurprisingly the list is dominated by Americans, with Amazon's Jeff Bezos ($138 billion), Microsoft's Bill Gates ($98.5 billion) and Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffet ($83.6 billion) named as the three wealthiest people in the world right now.
In comparison, there are just six Africans ranked among the world's 500 richest people, while China which has a population that rivals the African continent, boasts 44 billionaires on the list.
Aliko Dangote's $17 billion net worth makes the Nigerian the richest person in Africa.
Dangote is among just a few Nigerian billionaires, most of whom accrued their wealth by coming into possession of lucrative oil blocks or, in the case of telecom magnate Mike Adenuga, providing services to a fast-growing population.
Egyptian brothers Nassef and Naguib Sawiris also feature on the list with a net worth of $6.79 billion and $5.04 billion respectively.
