Katsina Times
Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has recounted a defining moment in his journey to building the world’s largest single-train refinery, revealing how he boldly dismissed a minister’s advice against the project.
Dangote made the revelation at the investiture ceremony of Dr. George Elombi as the 4th President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), held recently.
Sharing his experience, the industrialist recalled that when he began work on the multi-billion-dollar Dangote Refinery project, several people doubted its feasibility.
He narrated how, years ago, during the Ramadan fast in Mecca, a then Minister of Energy had advised him to abandon the refinery project, warning that “refineries are only built by multinationals or sovereign nations.”
Dangote, however, said his response was firm and resolute.
“Your Excellency, I’m not looking for advice, because I’m already in it,” he told the minister.
The billionaire businessman went on to acknowledge the support he received from key African financiers and partners who believed in his vision, including Afreximbank’s Professor Benedict Oramah, Access Bank, Zenith Bank, and business moguls like Femi Otedola.
According to him, the idea of building a refinery 50 percent larger than any ever constructed by multinational corporations or sovereign states was viewed as impossible — until it became a reality.
Dangote’s refinery, located in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, is now regarded as one of Africa’s most transformative industrial projects, designed to meet the continent’s fuel demands and reduce dependency on imports.
The event in Cairo also marked a new chapter for Afreximbank under Dr. George Elombi’s leadership, with Dangote commending the bank’s continued support for African entrepreneurs driving industrial transformation across the continent.
