Growth happens within the spectrum of discomfort. When storms of controversial discomfort hits, therein you must enter growth mode, and take advantage of the pressure to force growth on yourself, and your business ventures.
Sir Wicknell did this in recent years as he stood accused of plotting the Robert Mugabe Coup.
Controversy and riches are synonymous, and unless you want to be controversial, you may not want the life of wealth in Africa or any other place in the world. Wicknell Chivayo, the Zimbabwean businessman embraced controversy, with determination and market ingenuity, he rose to prominence in procurement, logistics, and in recent years, securing investments to establish energy production in Zimbabwe.
Today, he is among the wealthiest people in Africa. There is an increase of African millionaires into the global scene, as the continent develops, and economies grow. Whilst controversy surrounds these rising millionaires from Africa, they have become comfortable enough to embrace it and use it to further their growth in these leagues of distinguished gentlemen.
The "Africa Rising" story, as discussed by the Economist, evidencing that Africa has become a major player on the global stage in recent years into the foreseeable future. Many African economies are growing rapidly, and unexpectedly so, with investment seeking out to regions such as Nigeria, Ethiopia, and South Africa. What is giving rise to the millionaires’ population in African economies is the fact that more small business owners in Africa are travelling, learning new ways of starting and growing businesses, and sealing lucrative deals of mega projects in Manufacturing, Energy, and Agriculture. Wicknell Chivayo lives a somewhat Millionnaire nomadic life, as he is in most parts of the western world and Africa in each month. He is seen in New York, Dubai, Johannesburg, and back to Harare, for not only shopping and socialite-living, but in the background making deals that change the stage for his business.
According to Knight Frank's Wealth Report, there are over 500,000 millionaires in Africa. The increase of millionaires in Nigeria alone is an overwhelming figure. Nigerians are expected to have over 100,000 new millionaires living in Nigeria by 2025; a figure that is more than triple compared to the previous year. This can be contributed to the booming Nigerian economy, and various sectors growth such as telecommunications and oil/gas production.
The number of African millionaires is increasing, as the continent develops and economies grow. The rise of African millionaires has been accompanied by the rise in Africa's GDP. A recent study conducted by Citigroup that looked at six emerging market countries; Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and Mexico predicts that these countries will make up more than 40% of world GDP by 2050.
Back to Sir Wicknell Chivayo.
Sir Wicknell Chivayo, a businessman from Zimbabwe and one of its richest. He began his business career as a security guard for a grocery store in Harare, Zimbabwe and has since made his fortune by purchasing government contracts. He grew up with little money but had an immense amount of potential that caught the eye of his supervisors. They took him on as an apprentice in their company and later promoted him to being one of their regular employees, teaching him how to run their stores before moving into bigger ventures.
The Source, revealed in May 2016 that Chivayo's company was awarded tenders to build power stations by the country's power company Z.E.S.A Holdings despite having no experience building power stations. The tender deals awarded to Intratrek and its partners included a $73 million refurbishment of the Harare power station; a $163 million project to restore Munyati power station; a new $128 million hydropower station at Gairezi; and a $202 million 100MW solar power plant in Gwanda.
Multiple irregularities were reported to have taken place as part of the deals. Questions were raised by the National Audit Office regarding the transparency of tenders awarded by ZESA, challenges faced in the implementation of projects and potential conflict of interests.
In October 2016, he was arrested alongside a group of other Zimbabwean business leaders after a tip from South Africa's intelligence service that they were planning to overthrow President Robert Mugabe. The intended coup was stopped before it began, however Chivayo was arrested as part of an investigation into him for allegedly plotting a coup against President Mugabe. He fled to Malaysia shortly after being released on bail because he was afraid that his life was in danger due to possible retaliation from ZANU-PF supporters. These of course, were all unsubstantiated allegations that just added to the thrill of controversy that Sir Wicknell so loves to use as fuel to do greater things in the stormy cloud. He increased the volume of socialite-living on Social Media.
Sir Wicknell, as he is known on social media in Zimbabwe, is very controversial, but he gets the deals, and deal making is what millionaire life is all about globally. The Source revealed that Wicknell Chivayo is a businessman who is passionate about giving back to the less fortunate and uses his business deals to finance humanitarian projects in Zimbabwe.
He has helped rebuild a school for orphans, given school supplies and built new houses for victims of the floods that ravaged parts of Zimbabwe. He also supports animal welfare and rescues homeless dogs from being killed at the dog pound.
Wicknell Chivayo is not a criminal; he is a streetwise, boardroom intelligent entrepreneur that is daring, and that has resulted in him having to structure and conclude deals that have led to him become a millionaire in Zimbabwe.
The 39-year-old businessman is an avid animal lover. He has conducted several successful campaigns to rescue and rehabilitate dogs that were locked up in the Harare dog pound, donated financial aid for animal welfare, supported communities to build animal shelters and rescued animals from floods that had hit parts of Zimbabwe.
He launched a campaign in 2015, where he donated groceries to those in need and built houses for orphaned primary school children using his wealth from running his successful businesses as well as the money, he got from selling his properties located at Montrose Close in Borrowdale Brooke and The Chase in Crestline.
Wicknell Chivayo is a Social Media Influencer with 176,000+ followers on Facebook, 126,0000+ followers on Instagram, and 36,000+ followers on Twitter. He is very active, controversial, but extremely calculating and focused entrepreneur that knows how to use controversy for business growth.
Anyone desiring millionairehood must be ready for the criticism, mocking, challenges, storms, that controversially come with the territory, and it definitely is not for the faint hearted, but for those that see the nobility in themselves being that great, as Sir Wicknell Chivayo does.
Source: The Source, Pindula, The Herald, Knight Frank, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook
