BEVERLY HILLS, September 21, (THEWILL) – Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, on Wednesday stated that he is hoping that the prices of crude oil will remain low so that Nigeria can be weaned from dependence on the commodity.
He stated that agriculture should be the focus of government, as well as gas and minerals, in an effort to diversify the economy. He assured that Africa will soon become the food basket of the world.
Dangote stated this at the headquarters of global law firm, Shearman and Sterling LLC, where high-level business leaders and international diplomats gathered to hear Africa’s richest man and Rwandan President, Paul Kagame, openly converse on Africa’s opportunities and challenges.
Both leaders underscored the ongoing movement to diversify the economies of African countries. They cited continued need for heavy investments in education and connected the need for young people to be well trained for future jobs.
In the case of Nigeria, the industrialist said: “We should pray that oil prices remain low. This helps wean us off the dependency on revenues from petroleum. We must take oil to be the icing on the cake. We already have the cake.”
“Agriculture, agriculture, agriculture. Africa will become the food basket of the world,” he said.
In addition to agriculture, Dangote cited Nigeria’s vast mineral resources and gas and the need to manufacture more goods locally for domestic consumption. He predicted that “five of the twelve million jobs needed in Africa soon must be created in Nigeria.”
“Technology of course helps us a lot and our factories are state-of-the-art with the use of robotics, but we shouldn’t be overly technologically-oriented to create wealth,” he told investors.
Speaking to Americans who tend to rely on outdated news and wrong perceptions of Africa, Dangote said,
“Don’t be lazy. Go there and find the real story for yourself. Things have changed.”
He noted the Rwanda success story, where he had business interests as an example of positive change, good governance and leadership, as well as a country that has proven to tame the scourge of corruption.
The business mogul cited a personal experience of offering a $100 tip for services at the Kigali Airport to a staff who refused to take money for work they were paid to do.
