Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is urging the continent’s leaders to prioritize local businesses over foreign investors in driving economic development. Speaking at the Afreximbank Annual Meetings in Abuja, Nigeria, the Dangote Group President said true transformation must come from within.
“Local businesses are the ones who can bring about the needed development and transformation, not foreign investors,” Dangote declared during a fireside chat at the event. He stressed that no nation can develop sustainably without investing in its own people and enterprises.
Citing policy inconsistencies, poor regulatory frameworks, and frequent shifts in government priorities, Dangote described the African business climate as hostile to long-term investment.
“These policy inconsistencies are killing businesses across Africa,” he warned. Despite these challenges, he remains confident that African countries can raise the funds needed for infrastructure and progress—if they empower the right players at home.
Dangote called for an “Africa First” campaign to encourage regional partnerships and support homegrown entrepreneurs. “If America’s President can say ‘America First’, then Africa must do the same,” he said. “The time is now to back our own. Africa’s future depends on Africans.”
