By Charles Pemu 
ABUJA – Africa is “importing poverty” by failing to protect its domestic producers from a flood of cheap, often substandard petroleum products, warned Aliko Dangote, President/Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL). Speaking at the West African Refined Fuel Conference in Abuja, Dangote issued a passionate appeal to African leaders to adopt protective measures, mirroring those in the U.S., Canada, and the EU, to foster genuine continental growth.
Dangote highlighted a critical and worsening trend: the “dumping of cheap, often toxic, petroleum products” onto African markets. He specifically cited discounted, low-quality fuel originating from Russia, frequently blended to levels that would be outright rejected in European or North American markets.
The industrialist lamented Africa’s paradoxical situation: despite producing approximately 7 million barrels of crude oil daily, the continent refines only about 40% of its 4.3 million barrels per day consumption of refined products. This contrasts sharply with Europe and Asia, which refine over 95% of their domestic needs. Consequently, Africa annually imports over 120 million tonnes of refined petroleum products, representing a staggering $90 billion market opportunity that is currently being “captured by regions with surplus refining capacity.”
“We are effectively handing over an entire continent’s economic potential to others—year after year,” Dangote stressed. He underscored the severity of this economic drain, noting that “only about 15% of African countries have a GDP greater than $90 billion.”
Dangote’s call to action emphasizes the urgent need for African nations to safeguard their nascent refining capabilities and stimulate local production, thereby reversing the trend of exporting jobs and importing poverty.