President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has called on African entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, and wealthy individuals to invest in transformative projects that will accelerate the continent’s development and economic independence.
Speaking in Lagos while hosting participants of the Global CEO Africa Programme a collaborative initiative between Lagos Business School and Strathmore Business School, Nairobi Dangote emphasized that Africa has the resources, talent, and potential to compete globally if its private sector rises to the occasion.
The business magnate made the remarks after taking the visiting executives on a tour of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, which is currently the world’s largest single-train refinery. Dangote described the project as proof that ambitious ideas can be executed on African soil, urging the private sector to adopt a similar mindset across key sectors.
“There will always be challenges. In fact, life without challenges isn’t exciting. You just hope for the kind of challenges you can overcome—not the ones that overwhelm you,” Dangote also reflected on the scepticism that surrounded the refinery’s construction, noting that his team stayed the course despite the odds. “Now that we’ve built this refinery, we believe we can do anything. We aim to make our fertiliser company the largest in the world and we’ve set ourselves a 40-month timeline,” he revealed.
Dangote challenged African elites to resist the temptation to move their capital abroad, arguing that investing at home is critical for development. “We, as Africans, must stop taking our money abroad. We should invest it here to build our countries and the continent. If we don’t show confidence in our own economies and leadership, foreign investors certainly won’t,” he said.
He lamented that although African countries had achieved political independence, many remain economically dependent. Citing Dubai and Singapore, once on par with some African countries in the 1970s,Dangote said their progress stemmed from consistent policies and visionary entrepreneurship.
The billionaire industrialist also highlighted the continent’s infrastructure and policy challenges, particularly poor interconnectivity, noting that it is currently cheaper to import cement clinker from Spain than to move it from Nigeria to Ghana.
“The solution lies in the private sector. We need a strong banking sector, a robust manufacturing base, and thriving agriculture to support our youthful population. If you think small, you don’t grow. If you think big, you grow. It’s better to try and fail than never to try at all,” he advised the 24 CEOs present from six African countries.
The Global CEO Africa Programme is designed to shape a new generation of African business leaders who view the continent as a unified market. Academic Director of the programme, Patrick Akinwuntan, explained that the three-module course includes immersive weeks in Nairobi, Lagos, and New Haven, USA. “The refinery is a powerful symbol that vision goes beyond sight,” Akinwuntan said, describing Dangote as a model of bold, values-driven leadership.
Executive Dean of Strathmore Business School, Dr. Caesar Mwangi, said the visit would inspire participants to replicate large-scale, impactful initiatives in their own countries. “This refinery is proof that we must dream big, think big, and act. If the Dangote Group can achieve this, then so can others across Africa,”
Professor Olayinka David-West, Dean of Lagos Business School, added that the visit aligns with the school’s mission to develop leaders capable of solving Africa’s complex socio-economic challenges. “This facility is pivotal. It serves as a practical tool to implement frameworks like the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” she said.
Dr. Rabiu Olowo, CEO of Nigeria’s Financial Reporting Council and one of the programme participants, said the experience had reignited a bold vision for national transformation. Other participants included Segun Aina, global banking leader; Nancy Njau, Managing Director of Family Bank, Nairobi; Emmanuel Wakili, CFO at Ecobank for the CEMAC and CESA Region; and Ibukun Oyedeji, former President of the CFA Society Nigeria.
Their visit concluded with a shared call to action: only Africans can truly build Africa.
