Nigerian billionaires Dangote, Rabiu, others get $73 million in sugar subsidies

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Nigerian billionaires Aliko Dangote and Abdul Samad Rabiu are set to cash in on a recent N30-billion ($73 million) sugar subsidy announced by the Nigerian government. 

The development is taking place on the back of the launch of the $73-million Presidential Intervention on Irrigation Infrastructure to Accelerate Sugar Backward Integration Program. 

The program targets operators acting under the sugar backward intervention program, and serves to strengthen the National Sugar Masterplan, which aims to make Nigeria self-sufficient in sugar production and will create more than 100,000 jobs by 2022. 

Discussing the objective of the newly established fund, NIgerian Trade Minister Niyi Adebayo said: “The goal is to support the development of irrigation infrastructure on 10,000 hectares of sugar plantations located in six sites in Numan, Adamawa State; Sumti, Niger State; Lafiagi, Kwara State; Bacita, Kwara State; as well as Toto and Tunga, both in Nasarawa State.”

The initiative will be strictly monitored by the Central Bank of Nigeria and see the release of about N30 billion ($73 million) to companies in the industry, thereby boosting local sugar production levels and subsidizing prices nationwide. 

Billionaires.Africa gathered that two companies directly owned by the billionaires (Dangote Sugar and BUA Sugar) will massively benefit from the intervention program. This is because the companies are exclusive sugar importers in Nigeria, alongside Flour Mills of Nigeria. 

Recall that BUA Sugar recently secured a $200-million corporate facility from the Africa Finance Corporation to complete its vertically integrated sugar facility in Lafigi Kwara State in Nigeria. The facility will help the group to launch a 20,000-hectare plantation, 2.2-million-tonne sugar milling plant and 200,000-tonne-per-annum sugar refinery that will process and refine white sugar.