Nigeria stands to earn no less than $500 million from cement exports alone annually, according to Aliko Dangote, founder and president/chief executive of the Dangote Group.

Speaking during a high-level conversation titled “The Path to Making Africa Great Again” with CNN’s Eleni Giokos at the Afreximbank Annual Meetings, Dangote highlighted how strategic industrial policies and backward integration are transforming Nigeria into a major manufacturing and export hub for cement and other commodities.

“And now, also, Nigeria is the largest exporter of cement in Africa,” Dangote declared. “When we finish our factory, it’s 100 percent for export. And Nigeria will not earn less than $500 million of just exporting cement.”

Reflecting on Nigeria’s industrial journey, Dangote pointed to cement as a model of what is possible when bold policies are implemented and private sector investors are supported. He recalled a pivotal conversation with former President Olusegun Obasanjo that led to Nigeria’s backward integration policy in the cement sector. “President Obasanjo called me at 4:30 in the morning and said, ‘Aliko, Nigeria is number two in cement imports. I’m not going to allow this to continue. What do we do?’ I told him, remove my Dangote cap and let me speak for Nigeria.”

The resulting policy barred companies from importing cement unless they established local production facilities. “All of us now wanted to set up industries. We were small at the time, but our bankers were supportive,” he said. “We built a 5-million-tonne plant while Nigeria was producing 31.9 million tonnes. Today, Nigeria produces over 60 million tonnes of cement.”

Dangote also underscored that job creation and economic value cannot be achieved if Africa remains a dumping ground for foreign goods. “If we continue to import, we’re importing poverty and exporting jobs. We must process our minerals before exporting them to create employment,” he said.

Referencing former U.S. President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy, he stressed that African countries must adopt a similar mindset. “President Trump is saying America first. We should also say Africa first. The issue is that once you open your market without capacity, it becomes a dumping ground. That’s not fair competition. That’s dumping.”

He criticised the tendency of African elites to expatriate their wealth. “In Asia, whether people make their money legally or illegally, they invest it at home. In Africa, they take the money out. If I don’t invest at home, how do I convince someone else to partner with me?”

Dangote also called attention to the challenges facing industrialisation in Africa. “Two things don’t allow industries to thrive in Africa: lack of electricity and inconsistency in government policies.” He urged governments to take bold decisions like Obasanjo’s. “That policy changed everything. Today, Nigeria doesn’t import cement. It exports it and earns foreign exchange.”

In addition to cement, Dangote noted Nigeria’s growing success in the export of refined products and fertiliser. “We’re exporting jet fuel to Asia and the United States. In fact, 37 percent of our fertiliser goes to the U.S. That shows what can be done.”

He described the Dangote Refinery as a “madness project” but affirmed its worth. “If we knew what we were going to go through, we wouldn’t have done it. But we didn’t know, and we’ve delivered. It was humongous, and without the support of banks like Afreximbank, Access, and First Bank, it would not have been possible.” (BusinessDay)