Africa’s richest industrialist, Aliko Dangote, has expanded his continental industrialisation push into East Africa, as Africa must mobilise its own capital, build at scale and take ownership of the industries driving its transformation.
Dangote, who disclosed plans to invest an additional $50 billion across Africa after committing more than $25 billion to existing businesses, said the next phase of the Group’s expansion would combine massive industrial investment with a deliberate opening of its businesses to African ownership through the capital markets.
The declaration came in Nairobi on the eve of the groundbreaking of the Dangote East Africa Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals, scheduled for September 30, in Lamu, Kenya, a project Kenyan officials said emerged from high-level discussions about ending Africa’s historic role as an exporter of raw materials and importer of finished products.
Speaking during a fireside chat with the chief executive officer of the Nairobi Securities Exchange, Frank Mwiti, at the “Dangote Petroleum Refinery IPO High Level Investor Engagement” organised by the NSE, Dangote said Africa could no longer afford “baby steps” if it intended to compete globally.
“We have already invested more than $25 billion, but right now, we’re going ahead to invest an additional $50 billion.
“We want to create and generate wealth for Africans, to make sure that we defend our markets. And the only way to defend the market is not to do baby steps. It’s better we do big scale,” Dangote said.
The scale of that ambition will move into sharper focus on September 30, 2026, when the groundbreaking takes place in Lamu, opening a new chapter in Dangote’s drive to replicate in East Africa the industrial ecosystem created around the 700,000 barrels per day Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos.
The groundbreaking will proceed against the backdrop of a legal challenge over portions of the proposed project land in Lamu. The Malindi Environment and Land Court has ordered that the status quo be maintained on the disputed land until October 14 following a petition by 133 residents asserting rights over the property, although the court did not stop the ceremony.
Dangote, who said he learnt of the development from a media report shortly after arriving in Kenya, appeared unfazed, describing such disputes as part of the realities of executing major projects, drawing on the Group’s experience in Senegal where an investment also faced litigation up to the Supreme Court.
Under the Group’s Vision 2030, Dangote said the target is to build an African company with over $100 billion in annual revenue for the first time.
“We want to make sure that, for the first time, an African company will actually be out there with over $100 billion of revenue. This thing is possible,” he said.
He also disclosed a major expansion of fertiliser operations to about 12 million tonnes capacity to become the world’s biggest producer, urging governments to strengthen African financial institutions like Africa Finance Corporation to finance transformative investments.
