Barely 2 months after donating to ABU, Dangote votes N.3bn Business School to UI
…Vows to raise entrepreneurs for nation building
66th most influential person on earth and chairman of Aliko Dangote Foundation (ADF), Alhaji Aliko Dangote has challenged the government to muster the will to provide critical infrastructure that will make the nation’s environment conducive to commerce and industry.
Dangote made this appeal while delivering the third Eminent Persons Business lecture and inauguration of the Aliko Dangote Complex, a N300 million naira ultra-modern building donated to the University of Ibadan (UI), School of Business, at the Ajibode University extension, Ibadan.
The philanthropist averred that his foundation will continue to prioritize education as a means of raising entrepreneurs that will change the face of the nation’s economy and lead to real growth and development.
He told his audience comprising of academia, students, royal fathers and businessmen that Nigeria has got the potential s to be among the most industrialized countries in the world and required only the right policies to propel the investors into taking the lead in industrialization efforts.
Delivering his paper titled “Industrialization – Backward Integration as a strategy for National Development: The Story of the Dangote Group”, Dangote whose lecture was delivered by Engr. Ahmed Mansur, the Group Executive Director of the Dangote Industries Limited, stated that for the nation to breakthrough industrially, the leadership and the people must have the political will, the courage and perseverance to succeed.
Dangote was of the opinion that backward integration is one of the fine policies of the government that has helped Nigeria’s economy and that he had led in this regard as a private sector operator, advising that the policy could be replicated in other sectors of the economy.
Highlighting the advantages of the backward integration, the business mogul stated that there would be increased control and efficiency as companies are better able to control quality and coordinate the delivery of raw materials or other supplies.
In his remark earlier, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Prof. Abel Idowu Olayinka thanked Alhaji Dangote for the building describing it as a legacy that would forever be cherished generation yet unborn and by the donation, Dangote has become the first largest individual donor to the university.
He explained that Dangote was to donate N250 million to the university but they prevailed on him to build the complex rather than giving money and that the decision has paid off for the university.
Governor Isiaka Ajimobi of Oyo state, who is the Guest of Honour on the occasion urged Nigerian youths to learn a big lesson from Dangote’s humble beginning but with hard work has become one of the greatest entrepreneur in Africa.
The Governor who was represented by the state Commissioner of Education, Prof. Joseph Adeniyi Olowofela, lamented that most youths of today do not cherish hard work but want to get rich quick which explained the increase in social vices in the country
“We need to shift the paradigm shift from the get rich quickly at all cost to hard work that leads to wealth”, he stated.
The Director of the University of Ibadan, School of Business, Prof. Nike Osofisan said the institution owed Dangote a huge debt because the complex was more than a building.
She explained “the fully air conditioned complex has 9 lecture theatres, 10 lecturer offices, four Executive Director Offices, One Canteen, 250 KVA dedicated Transformer, and male and female conveniences”
