Nigerian businessman and Africa’s richest, leader of the Dangote Group
Environmentalists warn Kenya’s planned 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery at Lamu could damage fragile coastal ecosystems and lock the country into a fossil-fuel future, while officials argue it will create jobs. Greenpeace Africa is pushing for an independent environmental and social impact assessment before approvals proceed.
A continental push to industrialise the textile and manufacturing sectors is accelerated by investment in long-term funding, high-value processing, and regional value chains. Across Africa, governments and investors are turning cotton, textiles, and infrastructure into job-creating industries to retain value at home.
Dangote’s Lagos refinery IPO is aimed at democratizing wealth, with retail investors buying shares at 5,250 naira ($4) per share. The offer opens today and runs for a month, while the plant expands capacity to 650,000 barrels per day and eyes further growth, potentially expanding into the U.S. within three to four years.