December 20, 2025 — The latest wave of Africa-focused business, technology and leadership news is shaped by one headline theme. That means the influence is shifting to boardrooms and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence.
The changes are at the heart of New Africa magazine’s 2025 100 Most Influential Africans (MIA) list, which receives new attention on December 20, 2025, with news outlets across the continent expanding its highlights and individual awardees receiving new country-specific recognition. (1)
Notable centers of influence in Africa: business and finance to the forefront
The new Africa annual MIA list has long served as a snapshot of who is shaping the continent’s trajectory politically, economically, culturally and technologically. But the 2025 edition marks a particularly clear change in direction. For the first time in years, business and finance has surpassed the creative sector in terms of representation, reflecting how Africa’s economic agenda is increasingly set not just by culture and soft power, but also by corporate strategy, capital formation and industrial execution. (2)
Africa’s new editor Anver Velshi says the list is more than just a ranking, noting that for many it has become a “life-changing assessment”, a phrase that emphasizes how this annual roll call serves as a career catalyst and a barometer of power. (3)
What the 2025 list says about the moment Africa is currently facing
The key takeaway from the 2025 MIA list is not just who made it, but which sectors are receiving the most attention.
According to New African’s breakdown, the 2025 list includes 32 African countries, with 64 men and 36 women. In terms of number of categories, business was the most popular with 21 entries, followed by creative sectors (19), government (15), thinkers and opinion formers (15), sports (13), changemakers (9) and technology (8). Nigeria remains the most represented country overall with 21 names. (4)
The story behind these numbers is that economic leadership, from industrialization and infrastructure to digital capabilities and AI, is becoming inseparable from Africa’s sovereignty agenda.
AI ownership and “sovereignty” enter the mainstream of influence debates
One of the most recurring themes in the 2025 coverage is that technology, and in particular artificial intelligence, has graduated from a niche interest to become a pillar of continental strategy.
The New African brief emphasizes “ownership and sovereignty in AI” and highlights leaders working on uniquely African AI solutions designed for local realities, with the explicit aim of ensuring the continent becomes not just a consumer but a creator of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. (5)
This emphasis is important for both SEO and content. Talk of “AI in Africa” is increasingly intertwined with broader questions about data governance, public sector digital infrastructure, local language models, health and agriculture applications, and whether African economies can capture value from technologies that are reshaping global productivity.
New Jersey Ayuk’s award draws attention to Africa’s energy sovereignty debate
The second major theme running through today’s coverage is energy policy. There is a growing argument from Africa’s energy side that development priorities need to be set on the continent rather than on imports.
NJ Ayuk, executive chairman of the African Energy Chamber (AEC), attracted attention for his claims for Africa’s “right to determine its own energy future” and for his coverage of the MIA list. This framework characterizes the current energy sovereignty narrative. (6)
Ayuk’s argument is rooted in the scale of Africa’s energy access gap. This disparity remains one of the most important constraints to industrialization.
The International Energy Agency estimates that around 600 million people in Africa lack access to electricity. (7) The World Bank similarly points out that approximately 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live without electricity, a gap that is the focus of initiatives such as Mission 300. (8) On clean cooking, the IEA warns that approximately one billion people in Africa still lack access to clean cooking solutions, with significant health and development implications. (9)
In that context, Ayuk and the AEC argue that despite the expansion of renewable energy, hydrocarbons, especially natural gas, remain in the short-term development path for many African countries. (Whether you agree or not, the point is that access to energy is treated as a precondition for everything else: jobs, manufacturing, and competitiveness.) (10)
Dr Brooke Tay’s spotlight reflects Ethiopia’s ‘smart state capitalism’ story
On December 20, 2025, Ethiopia’s Business News added a country-specific headline to the broader MIA conversation. Dr. Brooke Tay, CEO of Ethiopian Investment Holdings (EIH), will be named among the most influential Africans in Africa in 2025, it has been reported. This recognition centered on his role in Ethiopia’s evolving economic reform agenda. (11)
The importance here is greater than a single profile. Mr Tay’s recognition points to a broader question that is becoming central to Africa’s economic strategy: how governments manage, reform and monetize public assets without compromising long-term national values.
The StockMarket.et report described Mr Tay’s approach as a gradual economic opening with a focus on governance, long-term value creation and competitive market structures, and said EIH announced deals across sectors such as logistics, real estate, telecommunications and agriculture, with the aim of unlocking the value of state-owned assets. (12)
EIH itself describes the institution as Ethiopia’s sovereign wealth and strategic investment arm, an institution established to manage and optimize key national assets across strategic sectors, and has named Dr Brooke Tay as CEO. (13)
Mr Tay’s appointment to head EIH was made public in 2024, with the agency announcing that he would leave his previous leadership role at Ethiopia’s capital markets authority to take up the role of CEO of the sovereign wealth fund. (14)
In other words, in the context of the 2025 MIA, Ethiopia’s story is read as a case study in public asset reform, state capacity, and efforts to transform national balance sheets into growth engines. Other African countries are also tackling this topic in their own ways.
Creative remains a powerhouse and 2025 will see headline-grabbing winners
Despite business and finance taking the top spot, the creative sector remains the second-largest pillar of the list, and the artistic story that accompanies the 2025 edition is unusually global.
New African Highlights singles out 2025 Turner Prize winner Nnena Kalou as an outstanding athlete, describing the award as a historic “first”. (15)
It is strongly supported by the independent press and public arts institutions. Tate’s press release confirms Nnenna Kalu has won the 2025 Turner Prize, with mainstream media reporting that she is the first artist with a learning disability to win the award. This is a milestone event that is widely discussed in the global art community. (16)
For Google Discover viewers, the intersection of African heritage, global cultural institutions, and barrier-breaking triumphs is the kind of story that truly transcends borders, and proves why “influence” isn’t just measured in GDP or politics.
Expanding Diaspora Influence: Zoran Mandani and the Politics of Global Cities
The 2025 MIA list also reflects an expanding definition of influence: the political power of the diaspora in the world’s capitals.
New Africans took up the banner of Zoran Mamdani, who is of Ugandan descent, after the New York election, positioning him as a potential ally of African interests in the United States. (17)
Mamdani’s election was covered by major US news outlets, including the Associated Press, which reported on his victory in the New York mayoral race and the subsequent transition. (18)
Whether you view this as symbolic or strategic, the message is clear. Africa’s influence is increasingly being recognized not only within African borders but also through diaspora leadership where global capital, media, and geopolitics converge.
Why the ‘Most Influential Africans’ list will still matter in 2025
As evidenced by the reports circulating today, the MIA list has become more than just a magazine feature.
The African Energy Chamber article states that the MIA list is one of the most widely read features in New African magazine, and that the list is compiled with input from correspondents and collaborators across Africa. This formulation helps explain why this list has staying power and why it continues to generate subsequent headlines like those seen on December 20th (19).
And importantly, the list is discussed not as an abstract celebration, but as a real-time reflection of what the continent is prioritizing right now.
Capital and executive capacity (business leadership, investment institutions, reform agendas) Technology institutions (AI development, data sovereignty, regional innovation ecosystems) Energy realism (power access, industrialization pathways, transition politics) Cultural breakthroughs (creativity as global awards, expression, influence)
What to watch next
The conversation sparked by New Afrikan’s 2025 list, and amplified by today’s reporting, suggests that the 2026 impact debate will intensify around several flashpoints.
AI governance and local value capture: who owns datasets, trains models, and where economic returns come from. (20) Energy access as a competitiveness issue: electrification and clean cooking are increasingly framed not only as social goals but also as preconditions for industrial policy. (21) Public asset reform and sovereign investment strategies: The ‘how’ of modernization – governance, partnerships and market design – will continue to be a differentiating factor for countries seeking to increase growth. (twenty two)
For readers who came across this article through Google News or Discover, the conclusion is simple. The people in focus today are becoming not just people who can talk about systems, markets, infrastructure, and technology, but people who can build systems, markets, infrastructure, and technology. (twenty three)
References
1. newafricanmagazine.com, 2. newafricanmagazine.com, 3. newafricanmagazine.com, 4. newafricanmagazine.com, 5. newafricanmagazine.com, 6.energychamber.org, 7. www.iea.org, 8. www.worldbank.org, 9. www.iea.org, 10.energychamber.org, 11. www.stockmarket.et, 12. www.stockmarket.et, 13. eih.et, 14. eih.et, 15. newafricanmagazine.com, 16. www.tate.org.uk, 17. newafricanmagazine.com, 18. apnews.com, 19.energychamber.org, 20. newafricanmagazine.com, 21. www.iea.org, 22. www.stockmarket.et, 23. www.thesierraeonetelegraph.com
