Business
Dangote Cement Marks Host Community Day
. . . Ibese Plant Awards Scholarships, Empowers Youths, Women, Farmers
Dangote Cement Plc, Ibese Plant, has marked its 2023 Host Community Day with four multi-million Naira empowerment schemes targeted at youths, women, farmers and students.
These were detailed a statement electronically transmitted to Biztellers by the Corporate Communications Department of the Dangote Group on Thursday.
It stated, “At the well-attended event witnessed by leading traditional rulers, women and youth leaders from the host communities, 103 indigent and brilliant secondary and tertiary institution students across the 17 host communities were given scholarship awards and another set of 30 youths trained on shoe and bag-making were presented to the delight of the royal fathers.
“In the same vein, the management of Dangote Cement Ibese presented 60 Weeding Machines procured for farmers to help them clear their farms with ease, given that the communities are majorly agrarian and crop planting has been their means of livelihood.
“Not less than 50 women selected from the host communities were also empowered with deep freezers to help them cope with the prevailing economic challenge in the country.
“Same number of women were also gifted with ultra-modern grinding machines during the celebration of the maiden edition of the Community Day last year.
“Recall that the Cement Company had earlier intervened in a prolonged outage in some of the communities by procuring cables and other materials needed for the restoration of electricity to the affected communities.”
Plant Director, Ibese, Azad Nawabuddin noted that the company had stepped up its social interventions, given the prevailing challenging situation across the world.
According to him, businesses and families across the world and in Nigeria have been confronted with socio-economic challenges in the year 2023, pointing out that a lot has happened to test the peoples’ and organisations’ resilience and innovation, but that Dangote Cement has been able to weather the storm and remained afloat mainly due to the unalloyed supports received from the host communities.
He said, “The challenges notwithstanding, we are able to continue the upward trajectory in the delivery of our socio-economic development promises, in reciprocation and in line with our commitment to improving the overall wellbeing of our people. We have stepped up our social interventions in our host communities according to their needs and we will not shy away from making the people happy.”
According to Nawabuddin, Dangote Cement’s commitment to the well-being and development of its people through intentional empowerment programmes remain unwavering, adding that the management would continue to get better in its stride to fulfill the pact it has with the host communities and to complement the efforts of the Government in improving the standard of living of the people.
Reeling out some social investments carried out during the year, the Plant Director said “this year, we embarked on 23 social investment projects and revamp of ten non-functional CSR projects across the 17 host communities, in line with the thematic focus of DCP’s Social Investments i.e. Education, Health, Infrastructure and Empowerment, and we have so far recorded remarkable progress in their implementations.”
He described the scholarship programme as the oldest of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) by the plant and added that the scheme, which started with 28 students, has grown to cover 103 tertiary institution students and 17 secondary school students on annual basis.
Noting that the selected students enjoy scholarship up to graduation stage, after which the concerned communities supply replacements, he disclosed that a total of 989 Scholarships have been awarded under the scheme to date with many testaments to the positive impacts on the various communities.
On youth empowerment, the Dangote Cement boss said youths are regarded as a very critical stakeholder group in every society, but expressed regret that it has become impracticable for governments and businesses to meet the employment demand of all the youths.
“Therefore, as a responsible organisation, Dangote Cement, Ibese annually trains and empowers Youths across the host communities in marketable trade areas, with various implementing partners since 2019,” Nawabuddin added.
According to him, “Host community Youths had been empowered in vocations such as Catering and Event Management, Acutherapy, Tailoring and Fashion designing, and Domestic Electrification in the previous years and that this year, no fewer than 30 youths selected from the 17 host communities are being trained on Shoe and Bag-making, with the Industrial Training Fund as the implementing partner.”
On empowerment of the farmers, Nawabuddin stated that the farmers need support to take advantage of the available large span of arable land and that was why Dangote Cement Ibese procured 60 Weeding Machines for the farmer beneficiaries, “as it is becoming increasingly difficult to source labour from the neighbouring Benin Republic as was the usual practice.”
According to him, the farmers have undergone one-day training on the usage and basic maintenance of the tool. The Implementing partner, Equinox, which is also locally sourced to promote local content, also offered to train specially two of the beneficiaries on the repair to guarantee sustainability.
On the decision to empower women, he said explained that Dangote Cement management recognised the important role women play in building families and by extension, the society; thus the company provided a platform for regular engagement with women representatives of the Host Communities tagged ‘Women Assembly’.
“This year, the Company reached out to assess the needs of the Women in our host communities and came up with the request for Chest Freezers to help our people start new businesses and expand existing ones. It is our joy that the proposal has now come to fruition. Fifty (50) lucky women have deep freezers to enhance their businesses”, Nawabuddin stated.
In his goodwill message, the Aboro of Ibeseland, Oba Rotimi Oluwaseyi Mulero thanked the management of Dangote Cement, Ibese Plant for its gesture in impacting their host communities positively, noting that the people are happy and the company should not relent in its social interventions.
While describing the social performance profile of the company as very impressive, the royal father stated that with what Dangote Cement has been doing for the people, it beholves on the community leaders and all the residents to reciprocate and ensure peace reigns for the good of all so that the company can do more.
Oba Mulero said, “much as the people and community leaders are lauding the company for the giant strides in the host communities, I am also enjoining them not rest on their oars. we are still asking for more because all these projects can never be too much for the people. Also, we want the management to consider someone from the host communities to be appointed into management position.
“In all, Dangote Cement has done excellently well, last year we were here when grinding machines were given to our women. Today, it is freezers, the youths and the farmers are not left out. Scholarship for the indigent students, what can we say than pray to God to continue to help Dangote Cement grow more so that they can do more.”
In the same vein, the Ogun State Commissioner for Trade and Investments, Adebola Sofela, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. Olu Aikulola, commended Dangote Cement for the various interventions in form of empowerment of the people, describing the gesture as a kind of relief to the state government.
Of note, according to him, is the conflict resolution mechanism of the company, which he said has been very effective. He advised the management to sustain it while describing the Chairman of the Company, Aliko Dangote as the most progressive entrepreneur in the country.
The national oil company of the Republic of Congo, the Société Nationale des Pétroles du Congo (SNPC) and Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals (DPRP) are discussing a strategic partnership aimed at strengthening the Republic of the Congo’s supply of refined petroleum products.
The parties also have on the agenda, advancing regional energy cooperation and industrial integration across Africa, Biztellers can report.
SNPC Managing Director, Maixent Raoul Ominga, who led a delegation from his country on a visit to the DPRP, described the facility as a strategic asset for Africa and expressed the national oil company’s interest in developing a long-term partnership with Dangote.
“We have visited this remarkable refinery, which represents a major industrial achievement for Africa. The Republic of the Congo has refining capacity and we are keen to explore strategic cooperation that will help strengthen the supply of refined petroleum products while creating value for both organisations,” Ominga said.
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Discussions between both organisations, he said, focused on opportunities for collaboration in refining, petroleum products supply, energy security, industrial development, and knowledge sharing.
He praised the Dangote Group for demonstrating that Africa can successfully finance, build and operate world class industrial infrastructure, describing the refinery as an important milestone in the continent’s industrial transformation.
Ominga also commended the Group’s investments in the Republic of the Congo, particularly in the cement sector, noting that they have strengthened local industrial capacity, expanded production and improved access to construction materials.
On his part, President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote, reaffirmed the Group’s commitment to Africa’s industrialisation through value addition, regional partnerships and investment across the continent.
“We are for Africa, not just Nigeria. Tell us what you need, and we will see how we can work together,” Dangote said.
He noted that the refinery has established a new benchmark for fuel quality in Africa by producing petroleum products that meet the highest international specifications, while improving access to cleaner fuels and reducing the continent’s dependence on imported refined products.
In the same vein, the Vice President, Oil and Gas, DIL, Devakumar Edwin, outlined the Group’s long term expansion strategy, which will increase its total refining capacity to 2.1 million barrels per day, comprising 1.4 million barrels per day in Nigeria and a planned 700,000 barrels per day refining complex in Kenya to serve East African markets.
He also disclosed plans by the Group to invest an additional US$46 billion between 2026 and 2028 across its refining, cement and fertiliser businesses as part of its drive to accelerate industrialisation across Africa.
The engagement underscores the shared commitment of SNPC and the DPRP to deepen African energy cooperation, strengthen regional value chains and promote greater self sufficiency in refined petroleum products as the continent advances towards enhanced energy security and increased intra African trade.
Also present at the meeting were Group Executive Director, Commercial, Oil and Gas, DIL, Fatima Aliko Dangote; Adviser to the President of the Republic of the Congo, Peggy Ndongo and advisers to the SNPC Managing Director, Aymar Ebiou and Norbert Mabiala.
As part of efforts to protect Nigeria’s oil revenues and energy infrastructure, the Nigerian Navy recently recovered approximately 22,870 litres of suspected illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) in Rivers State.
It was gathered that the value of the seized petroleum product is put at about N39 Million.
The seizure, carried out under Operation Delta Sentinel, is part of an ongoing security intervention designed to disrupt illicit petroleum supply chains which the Navy says continue to undermine government earnings and legitimate operators in the oil and gas sector.
According to the Navy, personnel of Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) SOROH acted on intelligence reports and intercepted a wooden boat transporting 36 sacks of suspected illegally refined diesel in the Orashi Forest area of Okolomade Community, Abua/Odual Local Government Area of Rivers State.
In a media statement, Director of Information, Nigerian Navy, Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, revealed that further aerial surveillance and ground searches uncovered an additional 45 sacks of the product concealed under vegetation and inside ponds, bringing the total recovery to 81 sacks containing about 22,870 litres of AGO.
Navy Captain Forunsho stated that the operation highlights the growing use of intelligence and surveillance technology by security agencies to tackle crude oil theft and illegal refining activities, which industry stakeholders say contribute significantly to production losses, environmental degradation and reduced government revenue.
According to him, disrupting the logistics networks supporting illegal refining operations is critical to improving transparency in the petroleum value chain and safeguarding investments in Nigeria’s oil-producing region.
“The recovered products and the wooden boat used for transportation were handled in line with established anti-crude oil theft procedures.
Meanwhile, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, reaffirmed the commitment of the service to sustain intelligence-driven operations aimed at dismantling criminal networks involved in oil theft and protecting the nation’s strategic economic assets.
Business
Tanzania, Dangote Group Explore Multi-Billion-Dollar Investments in Infrastructure, Energy, Fertiliser
President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania has held high level talks with President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, on a major expansion of the Group’s investments in Tanzania.
Biztellers reports that the discussions focused on transport infrastructure, fertiliser production, power generation, ports and regional trade.
The meeting, held at the State House in Dar es Salaam, reaffirmed the long-standing partnership between Tanzania and the Dangote Group while opening discussions on a new phase of investments aligned with the country’s industrialisation and economic transformation agenda.
Speaking after the meeting, Dangote said Tanzania remains one of Africa’s most attractive investment destinations, noting that the Group had identified several strategic sectors capable of delivering significant economic value.
“We have identified areas that can deliver significant value for Tanzania, and we are ready to work together to develop them for our mutual benefit,” he said.
The discussions covered a broad range of projects, including port development, the construction of a 40-kilometre concrete access road to support port operations, development of a special trade zone, a proposed 2,000-megawatt coal fired power plant, a urea fertiliser plant and transport infrastructure linking Mtwara with Mbamba Bay in southern Tanzania.
Dangote also explained the commercial and technical considerations behind the Group’s decision to locate its planned East African refinery in Lamu, Kenya, while extending an invitation to the Government of Tanzania to participate in the investment.
President Samia welcomed the Dangote Group’s continued confidence in Tanzania and directed relevant ministries and government agencies to commence detailed technical discussions on the proposed investments in line with the country’s legal, policy and development priorities.
She also appointed the Minister of Planning and Investment to coordinate the strategic partnership with Dangote Industries Limited, with both sides expected to begin formal negotiations in the coming days.
A Tanzanian government delegation led by the Minister is expected to visit Nigeria to advance discussions and develop implementation frameworks for the proposed projects.
According to a statement from the Directorate of Presidential Communications, the Government remains committed to strengthening partnerships with the private sector as part of efforts to mobilise productive investment, accelerate industrialisation, promote technology transfer, and create sustainable employment opportunities.
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Dangote Industries already operates one of Tanzania’s largest industrial investments through its US$500 million cement plant in Mtwara, which has an annual production capacity of three million tonnes and supplies both the domestic market and neighbouring countries.
The latest engagement deepens the partnership between Tanzania and the Dangote Group and reinforces the company’s position as one of Africa’s leading private sector investors driving regional industrialisation, infrastructure development, and economic integration.
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