Lafia: Gov. Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa state has urged the Dangote Group to scale up its investments by leveraging the state’s abundant mineral resources. Sule made the appeal at the opening of the 3rd edition of the Nasarawa Trade Fair and Exhibition (NASTFE) in Lafia. The governor was represented by the Director of Trade in the state Ministry of Trade Industry and Investment, Dr Ahmed Agbo II. Sule noted the existing high-level collaboration between the state and the Dangote Group, emphasizing that Nasarawa State is home to several mineral resources that would interest the Dangote Group.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the Governor commended the company for its job creation stride, adding its 100 billion dollars target for Vision 2030 would further help small businesses and the Nigerian economy. The Dangote Group is the major sponsor of the Nasarawa Trade Fair and Exhibition (NASTFE) with the theme: Unlocking Industrial Synergy: Deepening the Value Chain and Driving Inclusive Growth in Nasarawa State. The State is home to the Dangote’s Nasarawa Sugar Company Limited (NSCL), a backward integration project in the sugar sub-sector of the Nigerian economy. The sugar project, when completed, will be one of the biggest sugar investments on the African continent.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Association of Small-Scale Industrialists (NASSI) has said that the Dangote Group’s Vision 2030 would support Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Nigeria. This announcement comes as participants throng the company’s pavilion at the ongoing 3rd edition of the Nasarawa Trade Fair and Exhibition (NASTFE). Speaking to newsmen on the sideline of the Trade Fair, Chairman of NASSI, Nasarawa State Chapter, Nidan Manasseh, mentioned that the company’s achievement was a model for small and micro businesses in Nasarawa state and Nigeria as a whole. He stated that NASSI was partnering with the Dangote Group to upscale small businesses in Nigeria in line with the company’s Vision 2030, which would positively impact all economic activities on the African continent.
Manasseh further elaborated, ‘Our strategy is to align local enterprise development with large-scale industrial systems in line with the Trade Fair’s theme: Unlocking Industrial Synergy: Deepening the Value Chain and Driving Inclusive Growth in Nasarawa State.’ He highlighted that through its flagship Empowerment Skill Acquisition Programme (ESAP), thousands of youths across Nasarawa State have been trained.
Speaking at the opening of the fair, Mrs Fatima Wali-Abdurrahman, Regional Director and Senior Adviser to the President of the Dangote Group, said the fair was timely. She stated that the Fair provided a valuable platform for the company to engage with key stakeholders and Nigerians interested in exploring business opportunities with the organisation.