NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA
The largest manufacturing conglomerate in West Africa wants to create 15,000 jobs by launching a sugar industry in Nigeria’s Niger State.
The Dangote Group, headed by billionaire Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has signed a $450 million memorandum of understanding to develop an integrated sugar industry in the central Nigerian town of Lavun. The 16,000-hectare plantation would produce 12,000 tons of sugar cane per day.
“Dangote Group is a firm believer in the vast economic potential of Nigeria,” Dangote said. “We have decided to invest in local sugar production in Niger because of the vast arable land available in the state.” He said that the memorandum also involved establishing a large-scale rice milling factory.
The business group also is busy in other parts of the country. It is constructing a multibillion-dollar petroleum refinery in Lekki, Lagos State, with a capacity for 650,000 barrels per day. Dangote said the petroleum project would rank as the world’s largest single-line refinery, adding that it would make Nigeria an exporter of petroleum products.
Niger State Gov. Abubakar Bello said the project would diversify the area’s income sources. He also promised the state would work diligently with the Dangote Group to acquire land to speed up the start of the project.
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