Speaking at the Dangote Cement Distributor’s award night for
the year 2023, tagged: ‘Forward together,’ he also disclosed that plans are in
place to consolidate Dangote Sugar Refinery, Dangote Salt and Dangote Rice into
Dangote Foods.
He stated that the consolidation is a strategy to harness
the benefits of backward integration via linkages and build a more formidable
food subsidiary, adding that by the year 2025, the group will be producing a
million tons of rice that are expected to create thousands of jobs.
Dangote assured Nigerians of continuous research and
improvement in the production processes to deliver the best quality products in
the market.
He said: “We are celebrating an enduring partnership that
has elevated us to become Africa’s largest cement company; a partnership that
is aptly captured by the theme of today’s event. This partnership has seen us
toil shoulder-to-shoulder to overcome various obstacles in the cement sector
and deliver value for all stakeholders.
“We are renewing and strengthening the trust you reposed in
us by remaining true to Dangote Cement. We are deepening this relationship as
we continue the ‘forward together journey to retain and extend our lead in the
domestic market.
“Our refinery has kicked off the refining of crude oil with
Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and JETA1 fuel as initial products. We expect gasoline
and polypropylene by the end of March. We believe that Nigeria’s dependence on
imported refined petroleum products will be eliminated very soon.
“We trust that our refinery will largely transform Nigeria’s
economy, create more linkages, and ensure the evolution of ancillary industries
dependent on its byproducts. We are hopeful that more jobs will be created,
therefore reducing the level of youth unemployment and improving livelihoods.”
The Group Managing Director, Dangote Cement, Mr Arvind
Pathak, commended the customers for their support to the success of the
business.