Dangote Sugar commits billions to CSR schemes in Adamawa, Nasarawa

*The Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc stresses how the company has increased the scope of its social intervention programmes where its Backward Integration projects are located in the host communities in Adamawa and Nasarawa States of Nigeria

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

The Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc (DSR) has scaled up its social intervention programmes around host communities in Adamawa and Nasarawa States where its Backward Integration projects are located.

The Group, in a statement the Corporate Communications Department issued Monday, September 19, 2022, disclosed it is investing hugely in raw sugar production as part of the Federal Government Sugar Master Plan.

This is coming on the heels of the $500million fund that has so far been injected into the project in Nasarawa.

The conglomerate stated the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) has developed a roadmap for the realisation of self-sufficiency in the sugar sector within a short time.

According to Dangote Group, the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan (NSMP) gave birth to Sugar’s Backward Integration Policy (BIP).

Billions of Naira have been expended on social intervention schemes around the communities hosting DSR Numan in Adamawa, and Tunga Sugar Project in Nasarawa, the statement noted.

The company also said with 78,000 hectares of farmland in Nasarawa, and 32,000 hectares in Adamawa, it is creating thousands of employment opportunities for Nigerians.

The Groups further said, currently, over 600 workers are being engaged, while 90MW is to be generated in the Dangote Sugar Project in Tunga, Nasarawa State.

“The Dangote Group is the second largest employer of labour after the Federal Government,” it said.

While speaking at a recent Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Sugar Refinery, noted that the country could rake in about $700 million yearly in Foreign Exchange (Forex) from the BIP scheme.

Dangote also warned that the BIP scheme must be protected to insulate the Nigerian economy and create jobs.

“If the National Sugar Master Plan is followed strictly and the players follow the rules, the country will be better for it as Nigeria will save between $600 million and $700 million annually as forex,” said the President/Chief Executive of Dangote Group.

The company said when the factory is fully operational, it will have the capacity to crush 12,000 tonnes of cane per day,

Some of the Corporate Social Responsibility projects executed include the provision of blocks of classrooms, scholarship, water scheme, rehabilitation and opening up of road network, and construction of health center, among others.

Otunba Niyi Adebayo, Honourable Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, who was on a working tour of the Dangote’s expansive Savannah Sugar Company (SSCL) Limited, in Numan, Adamawa State, and the Tunga sugar project site in Nasarawa State, had described the projects as “huge, impressive and amazing.”

Otunba Adebayo said: “It’s a very impressive sight.  It’s amazing that such a project exists in this place. What we’ve seen so far from all the plantations we’ve been to is very impressive.

“We are impressed with the level of work they are doing.”

Likewise in the DSR Numan, the company noted that it is not resting on its oars.

“In 2020, the company constructed multimillion naira blocks of classrooms, administration blocks, and an examination hall,” said the Group.

DSR Numan has also intervened in the provision of electricity through the donation of 300KVA to the Gyawana Community, as well as the donation of a 27KVA Generator to the Lamurde Community.

Dangote Group as well stated the company has instituted an out-grower scheme in DSR Numan, of which 294 people have so far benefited.

Noting that its intervention in road infrastructure has been very huge, the company listed some of the projects to include rehabilitation of the Gyawana-Lamurde Road, Gyawana-Zekun Road

Gyawana Township Road,  rehabilitation of Dubwangun Road, and the rehabilitation of Opalo-Zekun Road, among others.

Besides, the company has doled out financial support to the youth, religion, and development-based groups in Adamawa State, the statement said.