Dangote Calls on Wealthy Nigerians to Invest in Nation’s Development, Reflects on Challenges of $20bn Refinery Project
L-R, Director of Academic, Strathmore Business School (SBS), Carol Musyoka; Director of Academic Lagos Business School (LBS) Patrick Akinwuntan; Vice President, Oil and Gas, Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin; President / CE, Dangote Industries Ltd, Aliko Dangote; Dean of Lagos Business School ( LBS) Professor Olayinka David-West; Executive Dean of Strathmore Business School(SBS) Nairobi Kenya, Dr. Caesar Mwangi, during the visit of LBS’ Global CEO Africa Programme Cohort 5 to Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Fertiliser Plant in Ibeju-Lekki Lagos on Thursday July 10,2025.
Asks for Investment in Nation’s Development
Africa’s richest man and President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has asked wealthy Nigerians and African entrepreneurs to commit their resources to local investment as a necessary path toward sustainable national and continental development.
While speaking in an exclusive media chat, Dangote emphasized that no nation can experience real growth without significant domestic investment. He urged Nigeria’s affluent class to channel their wealth into the country rather than stashing it abroad, insisting that economic transformation is only possible when capital is reinvested into local infrastructure and industries.
“There’s hardly any country without corruption,” Dangote remarked. “But the difference is that in those countries, even when money is stolen, it is often reinvested in their own economies. Here, funds are kept in foreign banks where they do nothing to support Nigeria’s growth.”
He stressed that true development lies in bold, transformative projects, and not in capital flight. Highlighting Nigeria’s persistent infrastructural gaps and the continent’s unemployment crisis, Dangote called for greater local investment as the solution.
Reflecting on his decision to build the $20 billion Dangote Petroleum Refinery, the business mogul revealed that the journey was marked by enormous challenges and skepticism—even from close associates.
“People thought we were crazy. Many advised me to abandon the project, saying even sovereign nations had failed to pull it off,” Dangote disclosed. “But we were determined to make Nigeria self-sufficient in refined petroleum products.”
He admitted that had he fully understood the scale of the task, he might not have started it at all. “We didn’t quite know the enormity of what we were facing. But we believed in the vision. At some point, it was either we give up and count our losses, or we push through. We chose to push.”
Now nearing full operational capacity, the Dangote Refinery is poised to transform Nigeria’s energy landscape. Dangote expressed hope that the refinery will serve as a catalyst for industrial development across Africa, reducing the continent’s reliance on imported petroleum products.
He lamented that despite Africa holding over 125 billion barrels in proven crude oil reserves, the continent still lacks refining capacity. “With the exception of Algeria and Libya, most African countries—including major oil producers—remain import-dependent,” he noted, warning that this makes Africa vulnerable to substandard petroleum imports and deepens economic dependency.
According to Dangote, Africa must move beyond political sovereignty to embrace economic self-reliance, driven by industrialization and local value addition. “We cannot continue exporting raw materials and importing finished products. That cycle keeps us poor,” he stated.
He urged African nations to emulate the refinery model by investing in large-scale, value-adding industries that can create jobs, retain wealth, and stimulate regional trade.
Dangote concluded with a direct appeal to Nigeria’s business elite:
“Let’s invest in Nigeria for the sake of our children and the generations to come. If we don’t build this country, no one else will. That’s the only way we can secure a prosperous future.”
The Dangote Refinery, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, is currently Africa’s largest and one of the biggest in the world. Its full operation is expected to drastically reduce Nigeria’s fuel import bill, boost export potential, and provide thousands of direct and indirect jobs across sectors.
