Posted on: 01:14 Tue, 18 Oct 2016

The richest black man in the world has raised an alarm about the impending hunger crisis in Nigeria due to the current balance of payment deficit.



Nigeria may face the crisis of scarcity of food to feed its population of over 185 million people in the coming years following the unprecedented spate of importation in the country.

The claim was made by the honourable Chairman of the Dangote Group, Mr. Aliko Dangote who stated that 98 per cent of all dairy products consumed in the country are imported according to the News Agency of Nigeria.

Dangote made this assertion in lagos on Monday while addressing some students of the Executive MBA class of the Lagos Business School who visited the Dangote Petrochemical Refinery.

He said, “Ninety-eight per cent of all the milk and dairy products we consume in Nigeria are imported.

“This is why Dangote Group has planned to develop dairy plants, and develop homegrown milk production, to reduce importation.

“By 2020, it is estimated that the Nigerian population would have risen to between 207 million and 210 million. If we do not make efforts to grow and process our own foods, God forbid, we will go hungry.

“We have been in talks with the Central Bank of Nigeria on ways we can add value to our local produce, and we have marked massive dairy production for the next three years.

“We cannot solve all Nigeria’s problems, but at least we can embrace and add value to areas where we have comparative advantage.”

He said that Dangote Group was the most capitalised company on the stock exchange, with investments which include six ongoing projects that would create not less than 250,000 jobs across the nation.