He is a
pan-Africanist, a highly successful businessman, a visionary, an entrepreneur,
a man with a Midas touch, a role model and one of the best interesting positive
stories Africa has to tell. Enter the President of Dangote Industries Limited,
Alhaji Aliko Dangote, evidently the greatest entrepreneur on the soil of
Africa.
This man is not
one, whose beginning is shrouded in any kind of mystery, Dangote's humble
foundation would interest anyone, who craves for success in an environment many
people see as thorny for business. The thriving businessman, who hails from
Kano State, Nigeria, started business in 1978 from a loan of N500,000 from his
uncle and personal savings, and that humble beginning has experienced
phenomenal growth and has transformed to a multi-billion naira conglomerate,
which most Nigerians and even Africans are proud of. The suave and resolute
businessman is not a kind of person that believes in limitations, and with
that, he is involved in several areas of business interest that have earned him
respect all over the world.
As an
entrepreneur, Dangote's business is spread is all over Nigeria, moreso, he has
extended his frontiers to other parts of Africa and the world at large, no
wonder he has become one of the greatest business celebrities of our time and
one of the topmost successful businessmen of our generation.
When his name was
listed as the richest African by Forbes Magazine, nobody could question the validity
of the research because this man has been able to prove that despite all the
challenges businesses face in this part of the world, it is possible to
breakthrough with a strong will and determination.
That determination
to put resources together and make a difference in life has metamorphosed into
13 thriving and world class companies covering manufacturing,
telecommunications, haulage, trading, transportation, agriculture, oil and gas
as well as property. These has not only enriched the pockets of this great man,
it has put his name on the lips of many people including those in the rural
parts of the country and continent.
His being popular
is not just a function of his being successful in life, but most of Dangote's
products are household products that are useful to all categories of people in
the society, so the name 'Dangote' is not reserved for the elites, businessmen
or researchers like those of some others. If you are not using Dangote salt,
you will patronise Dangote Noodles, sugar, rice, cement and several other
products from his numerous companies.
For the records,
Dangote Group is the biggest quoted and most diversified business conglomerates
in Africa, so the story of Dangote is not just for today; it is one that would
attract the curiosity of generations unborn, and a good material for research
on how to grow business in the contemporary days and in the future.
Another dimension
to the success of this shining light from Africa is the fact that most of the
businesses he has been able to turn around with his unique business strategies
were hitherto moribund companies. He has been able to rejuvenate and turn them
into viable ventures, employing thousands of Nigerians, Africans and
foreigners. One of such companies is the Benue Cement Company, BCC, Gboko,
which Dangote acquired, when no one dared venture into such a company that was
experiencing serious downturn.
He once said that
“one part of the factory was burnt, another had been out of operations for
almost 20 months, the staffers were not paid and pension and gratuities were
not paid either. People just sat down doing nothing.”
But 10 years
after, the story has changed, Dangote turned the fortune of the company around
and a once dying organization is now the envy of others, and the factory now
produces about three million tones of cement against its old output of 300,000
tonnes.
Wherever Dangote
notices an opportunity, he never allows such to pass him by, not just for his
personal benefit, but to keep the economy of such area growing and affect lives
through contracts and employment.
Just recently, the
cerebral entrepreneur extended his business interest to Ibese, Ogun State,
where another Dangote Cement Plant was built and the facility was inaugurated
by President Goodluck Jonathan. The plant has the capacity to produce six
million tonnes of cement annually. The man, who is never relenting in promoting
the economies of African countries, said this about the gigantic project, “In
terms of giving jobs, I don't think the community (Ibese) has enough people for
us to employ.”
Talk of a man, who
brings life into any area he is attracted to, then the name of Aliko Dangote
would come up for mention, no wonder he wines and dines with movers and shakers
of countries, not leaving out presidents and prime ministers.
Obajana Cement,
Obajana, Kogi State is another successful cement projects of Dangote. The
factory, which is Dangote's most ambitious investment drive, produces about 10
million tones of cement, which means that everyday the company has 1,000 trucks
coming into load.
The cement
merchant has also concluded plans to open another Dangote Cement Plant in Cross
Rivers State.
Dangote's desire
to spread the wealth beyond the shores of Nigeria also saw him signing a $115
million (about N17.25 billions) investment agreement with the Government of the
Republic of Cameroon for the construction of a 1.5 million-metric tonne cement
plant.
It is noteworthy
that the long-term ambition of the quintessential pan-African entrepreneur is
to produce 50 million tones of cement and a terminal capacity in Africa by
2015. Although Dangote Cement plants are present in 14 sub-Saharan African
countries, this visionary entrepreneur has never hidden his intention to
further spread his tentacles. He said, “We are in about 14 African cnountries,
but they are all sub-Saharan. We have not really yet touched the North African
side, which we believe we will do when we get to a certain level of activity in
sub-Saharan Africa so that we don't have too many balls in the air. That is our
intention.”
Apart from being
the greatest investor in cement business in Africa in the cement sub-sector,
Dangote, 54 is also a giant in the sugar and rice business. Today, he controls
over 60 percent of the sugar business in Nigeria.
In 2002, he fought
and bought over the Federal Government-owned Savannah Sugar Company with a view
to turning it into a world-class corporation, and that he has been able to
achieve.
Despite being the
new face of Nigeria's industrial power and the richest African worth over $10.1
Billion, according to Forbes Magazine Dangote's wealth does not affect his
character. His humility, simplicity and down to earth nature is still a
surprise to many, who know him. When asked how he feels being the richest
African, Dangote said, “I feel just like you, I feel like a normal person. It's
just that I'm happy, when I spend money assisting other people.”
Dangote also
detests tribalism and other narrow sentiments. This much is evident in the
employment module of his businesses. He puts it this way, “Your thinking, your
business and your horizon can never be broad-based if you are parochial. Here,
our board consists of people from everywhere; Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba and even
foreigners. Where I live, there are Muslims and Christians and everybody lives
there in harmony.”
There is no
gainsaying the fact that Alhaji Aliko Dangote is building businesses that would
survive him and laying a solid foundation of a business conglomerate that would
be bigger than the economy of some countries in the nearest future.