The president of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has announced that Dangote Sugar Refinery (DSR) Plc is significantly scaling up its investment in the sub-sector in line with the requirement of the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan (NSMP).
Speaking at the flag off ceremony of the 2022/2023 Crushing Season and Outgrower Scheme Awards in Numan, Adamawa State, Dangote said the company is making massive investments in the state through the expansion of DSR Numan sugar refining capacity from 3,000 tons of cane per day (tcd) to 6,000 tcd, 9,800 tcd and 15,000 tcd.
He revealed that the company has concluded plans to increase its sugar plantation from the current land area under cane production of about 8,700 hectares in 2022 to about 24,200 hectares within the next 7 years.
He also assured that the company will double its scholarship and empowerment schemes in its host communities.
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He said: “We will continue to introduce more initiatives to support our host communities. Through these initiatives and our numerous Corporate Social Responsibility activities, DSR Numan will be able to touch the lives of the people, bringing social, economic and infrastructural development to our host communities.”
“We are thus committing over $700 million to our investment in the Backward Integration Programme (BIP) to enable us to put in place needed infrastructure for the eventual commencement of full-scale production.”
Dangote further assured that Dangote Sugar will change the trajectory by making Nigeria self-sufficient in the sector.
Speaking also at the event, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, described Dangote Sugar Refinery as the biggest contributor to the sugar development stride of the federal government.
He said agencies under his ministry will partner the company to provide the technical know-how that will support Dangote empowerment schemes in the host communities.
In the same vein, the governor of Adamawa State, Umaru Fintiri, who was represented by his deputy, Crowther Seth, assured the company of the support of the state government and enjoined other corporate bodies to imbibe Dangote’s spirit of job creation across the country.
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