Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has called on African governments to take decisive action mirroring policies in the U.S., Canada, and the EU to protect domestic producers from unfair competition and unlock the continent’s full economic potential.
Speaking at the West African Refined Fuel Conference in Abuja, Dangote sounded the alarm over the growing influx of cheap, low-quality, and often toxic petroleum products into African markets many of which would be banned in Western countries.
“To make matters worse, we are now facing increasing dumping of cheap, often toxic, petroleum products some of which are blended to substandard levels that would never be allowed in Europe or North America,” Dangote stated.
He specifically cited a rising wave of discounted fuel originating from Russia, often blended with Russian crude under price cap exemptions, and “dumped” across African markets, undercutting local producers and putting the continent’s health and environment at risk.
A $90 Billion Opportunity — Handed Away
Dangote lamented that despite Africa producing around 7 million barrels of crude oil per day, the continent imports over 120 million tonnes of refined petroleum products each year at an estimated cost of $90 billion.
“That’s a $90 billion market opportunity being captured by regions with surplus refining capacity,” he said. “To put this in perspective only about 15% of African countries have a GDP greater than $90 billion. We are effectively handing over an entire continent’s economic potential to others year after year.”
He warned that this heavy reliance on imported fuel results in the continent exporting jobs and importing poverty, rather than fostering industrialization and regional self-sufficiency.
Africa Trails in Refining Capacity
Despite its crude oil output, Africa only refines about 40% of its daily consumption of refined products, currently around 4.3 million barrels per day. In contrast, Europe and Asia refine over 95% of what they consume domestically.
Dangote emphasized that this imbalance weakens Africa’s energy independence, undermines local industry, and exposes countries to price volatility and environmental hazards linked to subpar imports.
A Call for Protection and Policy Reform
He urged African leaders to enact policies that safeguard local refiners and encourage investment in domestic refining infrastructure, warning that failure to do so would continue to derail economic growth.
“We are surrendering our economic destiny. Without protective policies, we cannot compete and without competition, there’s no real development,” he concluded.
