Growing up in Nigeria, Vaswani is one of the biggest investors in Africa and is a keen promoter of the opportunities for other GCC-based businesses to tap into the continent. His point that there is money to be made in Africa is proven and his African investments have made him the richest Indian in the GCC. His power and influence are set to further grow as GCC countries look to expand their operations and further capitalise on Africa as the next mega-market.

“I have a personal interest and passion for the continent’s progress and Dubai has been a great platform for our business interests there,” he told delegates at the Arabian Business Africa Forum in January. He added that Dubai, where his company Stallion Group is based, has become “the favourite hub for African business”.

Stallion Group’s most substantial business interests are in West Africa, particularly in Nigeria, where it owns a network of cold storage facilities and automobile distribution plants and showrooms. It manages international brands including Honda, Hyundai, Porsche, Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, Mahindra and Ashok Leyland across the region, as well as selling key products such as rice and building materials, and has operations in industries as diverse as rice milling, plastics, vehicle assembly, shipping and transportation.

Vaswani remain bullish on Africa despite the lacklustre performance of African countries in past months due to low commodity prices, the global economic slowdown, rapid currency depreciation, falling investments, policy uncertainty and rising unemployment. He is forging ahead with plans to create a specialist investment company to expand the group’s operations in the continent.

“I just never give up. If I set my mind on something, I just go for it and keep trying until I get it,” he said in his first interview with Arabian Business in 2015. This ability to see the light at the end of the tunnel is what has got Vaswani to where he is now.