- Dangote said the refinery project was fuelled by a burning desire to make Nigeria self-sufficient in refined petroleum products
Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has bemoaned the continent’s heavy reliance on fuel imports to meet its energy needs.
Dangote, who is the president of Dangote Industries Limited, observed that the situation has turned Africa into a dumping ground for substandard petroleum products.
He made the observations in an interview with journalists, where he also underscored the need for urgent investment in Africa’s energy infrastructure.
Speaking on what motivated him to build his massive $19 billion Dangote Refinery, Dangote
said the refinery project was fuelled by a burning desire to make Nigeria self-sufficient in refined petroleum products and encourage similar initiatives across the continent.
He said the current situation of things in Africa regarding energy security is worrisome and unacceptable, considering the continent’s vast crude oil reserves.
“Apart from Algeria and Libya, which are self-sufficient, virtually every other African country is an importer,” adding that “Africa has no business importing fuel. We have oil, but we have failed to refine it.”
He lamented that the lack of refining capacity has created opportunities for the inflow of poor-quality products that undermine health and environmental standards.
Dangote acknowledged the daunting challenges faced during the construction of the refinery, noting that many doubted the group’s capacity to execute a project of such scale.
“If I had known the scale of challenges we would face, I wouldn’t have started at all,” he said. “But we believed nothing is impossible.”
He stressed that the success of the refinery should serve as a rallying point for African governments and investors to embrace large-scale, transformative projects that tackle pressing socio-economic problems.
Dangote also called on wealthy Nigerians to invest in the country, warning that real development cannot occur without strong local investments.
“No nation develops without significant investments. I appeal to all wealthy Nigerians to look inward and invest here, in Nigeria, for the future of our unborn kids”, he stated.
The billionaire industrialist criticised the trend of exporting capital abroad, arguing that such practices drain local economies.