Economy
Dangote Vows to End Rice Importation in Nigeria
By Dipo Olowookere
Rice is a staple food consumed by many Nigerians, but it is unfortunate that the country relies on importation of the commodity to meet local demands.
However, Africa’s richest man, Mr Aliko Dangote, is determined to ensure rice importation in Nigeria becomes a thing of the past.
This he is doing by aggressively investing in the rice sector and on Wednesday, Mr Dangote laid a foundation stone for the construction of a multi-billion Naira rice processing mill in Hadin, Jigawa State.
This is part of the business mogul’s Rice Outgrower Scheme in Jigawa State and the mill has the capacity to process 16 metric tons of paddy rice per hour when completed.
The plant will also in one year process paddy rice worth N14 billion bought directly from the famers in Jigawa at market rate.
Speaking at the ground breaking ceremony in Hadin, Kaugama local government area, Mr Dangote explained that the commencement of the construction of the integrated rice processing plant was the culmination of series of events which began with the signing of a $1 billion agreement with the federal government for the integrated rice production in Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kano, Niger and Jigawa States.
“We have continued to pioneer new approaches to empowering our primary stakeholders and our farmers, through the Dangote outgrowers programme thereby creating thousands of jobs, increasing incomes, poverty reduction in rural communities by providing high quality agro-inputs, technical support and secured market for farmers.
“Also, creating access to finance, mechanization and irrigation services so as to enhance agricultural productivity,” he stated.
Recalling that the Dangote Rice limited started the outgrowers scheme in 2016 with thousands of hectares of land in Hadejia, Jigawa state, creating over 10,000 jobs (direct and indirect) to farmers, the business mogul said with the new ultra-modern mill enough paddy rice will be grown and harvested for processing.
According to him, the mill which will take only months for installation and commissioning is the first in the series of five other mills coming up in Kano, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi and Niger States in the first phase, while in the second phase, other mills will be built in Nasarawa, Kogi, and other states.
“When these planned six mills come fully on stream, we will achieve a capacity of seven hundred thousand metric tons per annum of Parboiled rice, which will make Dangote Rice the largest rice producer in Africa and will make a bold step in making Nigeria self-sufficient in Rice production, stop importation Nduka save the nation foreign exchange,” Mr Dangote said.
The industrialist stated further that towards co-creating value for all stakeholders, the company has engaged about 20,000 out growers who are expected to produce an average of 180,000 tons of paddy rice on about 30,000 hectares of land. “We are focused on engaging in the region of 300,000 farmers in the next 12 months when our rice mills are all functional and we achieve steady state.”
“We will continue to launch massive agricultural projects across the country in rice and dairy farming. Our push for backward integration in providing our own raw materials on a massive scale has led to the planned investment of $4.6 billion over the next three years in sugar, rice and dairy production alone. That will eliminate the country’s reliance on imported materials, and the foreign exchange headaches that come with it,” he said.
In his opening remarks, the Dangote Group Executive Director, Mr Devakumar Edwin, explained that the Dangote Rice team has been involved in scaling up the outgrower operations to at least 5,000 hectares this season and this will very soon increase and grow to over 15,000 hectares cultivated per cycle or season to fully optimise operations.
He said the establishment of a multi-billion Naira state-of-the-art integrated rice processing facility to process at least 260 metric tons of rice paddy per day grown which is produced from thousands of local rice out growers within Jigawa State is a giant step forward and expresses his company’s confidence and faith in local farmers to continuously stand with Dangote to make this project a success.
Located on 25 hectares site in Hadin, Mr Edwin noted that the mill is earmarked to begin operations in the last quarter of 2018. “During the construction phase and when it becomes fully operational, hundreds of employment opportunities will be created, knowledge transference and skills developed among our teeming youthful population thereby boosting local economy.”
According to him, “the Jigawa famers are in for a good times as the 125,000 metric tons of paddy rice that this plant requires for processing will be brought from the farmers of Jigawa for an estimated purchase price of N14 billion per annum. This is a huge benefit for the farmers in Jigawa.
“This mill will be producing high quality parboiled rice that competes with the best in the world this is in-line with our continuous aim to touch the lives of millions who believe in the Dangote brand.”
“Jigawa State is endowed and blessed with vast fertile land, water resources, climate and progressive people, as well as one of the fastest growing agricultural destinations in Nigeria, was identified as an ideal location for us to set up our first facility in Nigeria. This obviously reinforces our commitment to supporting the efforts of the present administration in developing a robust agro-industry in Nigeria.
“We made commitment to Nigerians that we will produce 1 million metric ton of quality parboiled rice. Since then we have embarked on several initiatives towards achieving this objective with support and collaboration from state and federal government agencies, ministries and departments, non-governmental organisations, community based organisations, traditional and financial institutions, etc., we continue to pioneer new approaches to empowering our primary stakeholders and our farmers, through the Dangote outgrower program thereby creating thousands of jobs, increasing incomes, poverty reduction in rural communities by providing high quality agro-inputs, technical support and secured market for farmers.”
On his part, Governor of Jigawa State, Mr Abubakar Badaru, expressed delight at the stage of the Dangote Rice project in the state saying it was in line with the vision of the Invest Jigawa, an organ set up to accelerate investments in the state.
He said Jigawa is one of the States reputed to be on top on ease of doing business in Nigeria saying the Dangote Rice presence in the state is a pointer to the fact. He added that the state is also in the forefront of the diversification efforts of the federal government from oil to non-oil ventures especially agriculture.
The Governor promised that the state will be willing to do whatever it will take to ensure the Dangote rice operate smoothly to the satisfaction of all parties in the state.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices climbed on Monday’s short trade as the United States and Iran threatened more attacks, as the two countries are engaging in indirect talks that could lead to the de-escalation of hostilities.
Brent crude futures settled at $109.77 a barrel after chalking up 74 cents or 0.68 per cent, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures traded at $112.40 after growing by 87 cents or 0.78 per cent.
The US and Iran received a framework from Pakistan to end hostilities, but this was rejected by Iran, especially the idea of immediately reopening the strait after President Donald Trump threatened to rain “hell” on the nation if it did not make a deal by the end of Tuesday.
Iran said it had formulated its positions and demands in response to recent ceasefire proposals conveyed via intermediaries.
The US is eyeing an agreement to open the crucial Strait of Hormuz, the shipping artery used by one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supply, but the strait, which carries oil and petroleum products from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, remains largely closed due to Iranian attacks on shipping after the U.S.-Israel attacks began on February 28.
Some vessels, however, including an Omani-operated tanker, a French-owned container ship and a Japanese-owned gas carrier, have passed through the strait since Thursday.
Meanwhile, major oil consumers, particularly in Asia, are conserving barrels or cutting consumption in response to the closure of the strait.
The Middle East supply disruptions have led refiners to seek alternative sources for crude, particularly for physical cargoes in the US and Britain’s North Sea.
Indian refiners have also postponed maintenance shutdowns of their units to meet local fuel demand.
On Sunday, the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) agreed to a modest rise of 206,000 barrels per day for May. However, this will only appear on paper as the disruption is limiting the ability of the top producers to add the needed output.
OPEC’s combined oil output losses for March were estimated at 7.2 million barrels daily. The biggest production cuts were made by Kuwait, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, for a total OPEC output of 21.57 million barrels daily for March. This is the lowest OPEC production rate since June 2020.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The owner of the $20 billion Dangote Refinery, Mr Aliko Dangote, said on Monday that the facility has increased exports of premium motor spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, and urea to African countries hit by supply disruptions caused by the Iran war.
Speaking during a tour of the refinery on the edge of commercial capital Lagos, Mr Dangote said the refinery, which is operating at its maximum capacity of 650,000 barrels a day, had helped cushion the full impact of the crisis both in Nigeria and across the continent.
“What I can do is assure Nigerians … and most of West Africa, Central Africa, and East Africa, we have the capacity to supply them,” he said, as per Reuters.
The businessman further said the facility had shipped some 17 cargoes of gasoline to other African nations, and exports of urea fertiliser had also recently risen, as buyers sought alternative sources of supply.
“In the last couple of days, we’ve been looking to mostly African countries, which we were not doing before,” he said, referring to the fertiliser shipments, without giving figures.
The refinery has the capacity to produce up to 3 million metric tons of urea annually, most of which is typically exported to the United States and South America, officials say.
Mr Dangote said the refinery hoped to get more crude cargoes to help curb rising fuel costs under the Crude-for-Naira initiative of the Nigerian government.
Last week, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited allocated seven May cargoes for the refinery, up from five in previous months.
The majority of Nigeria’s crude production is tied to Joint Venture (JV) contracts, which constrain the optimal supply of crude oil to the Dangote Refinery. This increase in crude allocations to the 650,000 barrel per day refinery could curb volumes of Nigerian crude available for export at a time when the Iran war has drastically cut supply from the Middle East.
The company is still purchasing crude at international benchmark prices from Brazil, Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Algeria, and the US, among others.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has projected relative stability for the Naira exchange rate in the second quarter of the year, supported by improved foreign reserves and liquidity, but cautioned that volatility risks remain.
In its Q1 2026 Economic Review and Q2 Outlook: Macro Stability Gains Amid Persistent Cost Pressures and Rising Geopolitical Risks report released on Sunday, the think-tank’s chief executive, Mr Muda Yusuf, said exchange rate conditions also improved significantly as the Naira, which experienced substantial volatility during the reform transition period, stabilised within a relatively narrow band of about N1,340–N1,430 per Dollar in the official market during Q1 2026.
“This stability has helped to moderate imported inflation and restore a measure of business confidence. External reserves strengthened considerably, rising above $50 billion in early 2026,” he stated.
The group said that the Nigerian economy in the first quarter of 2026 reflected a blend of improving macroeconomic stability and persistent structural constraints.
It said that proof of a more stable macroeconomic environment is increasingly evident, underpinned by the cumulative gains from foreign exchange reforms, a sustained period of monetary tightening, and the gradual normalisation of key economic indicators.
However, it noted that these improvements continue to coexist with significant headwinds, adding that the country’s economic growth will remain positive in the next three months, but the pace of expansion may slow due to mounting downside risk
The report also warned of a growing risk of stagflation, as persistent cost pressures combine with fragile growth conditions. It added that rising political activities ahead of the 2027 general elections could weaken reform momentum and distract from economic management.
The CPPE noted that rising global crude oil prices, triggered by the ongoing Middle East conflict, pose a major threat to Nigeria’s fragile disinflation process. While higher oil prices could boost export earnings and government revenue, the think tank stressed that the domestic impact would be adverse.
“The cost pass-through effect poses a significant threat to the fragile disinflation process, potentially reversing recent gains in price stability, weakening real incomes, and further exacerbating the cost-of-living pressures facing households and businesses,” the organisation said.
Highlighting monetary policy concerns, CPPE said the current inflationary trend is largely driven by structural and cost-related factors rather than excess demand, observing that, “Additional monetary tightening would have limited effectiveness in addressing the underlying drivers of inflation, while potentially exacerbating constraints on investment, credit expansion, and overall economic growth.”
The CPPE further raised concerns over the implementation of the proposed N68 trillion 2026 budget, citing weak revenue performance, delays in capital releases, and growing political influence on spending priorities.
“As political pressures intensify, there is a risk of weakening fiscal discipline, with greater emphasis on recurrent and politically expedient spending,” the group stated, advising businesses to shift focus towards resilience and efficiency, urging firms to prioritise cost containment, adopt alternative energy sources, and strengthen foreign exchange risk management strategies.
It also called on policymakers to take urgent steps to safeguard economic stability and protect vulnerable groups.
“Policy priorities should therefore focus on consolidating macroeconomic stability, addressing structural bottlenecks, and implementing targeted measures to protect vulnerable populations,” it noted.
The CPPE concluded that while macroeconomic stability gains recorded in the first quarter of 2026 are notable, the outlook for the second quarter remains cautiously positive but increasingly uncertain due to geopolitical tensions, fiscal risks, and domestic political dynamics.
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