Africa is as resource-wealthy as any continent, but the vast reserves of oil, diamonds, gold, copper and other minerals have been more a curse than a blessing. In his eye-opening investigation of plunder on a massive scale, Financial Times reporter Tom Burgis disentangles a web of hidden directors, concealed accounts, offshore banks and tax havens that have allowed the global one percent to loot the continent in concert with corrupt local rulers. Burgis shows that many of Africa’s potentially richest nations, including Angola, Congo and Nigeria, are kleptocracies run by thieves who refuse to share the wealth with their citizens.
