NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug. 7 – Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has listed Kenya among more than 10 African countries he considers promising investment destinations, citing the opportunities available across the continent.
Other East African countries he identified as promising investment destinations include Tanzania and Rwanda.
“…the promising countries: Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania. Rwanda is small but it’s very, very promising. You have Egypt is promising. Algeria is also promising even though they’re not very open,” Dangote said.
“Ghana is doing extremely well. Côte d’Ivoire, which is, you know, in West Africa, they are doing extremely very well. If in Guinea today, you look at the mines that was just opened by Rio Tinto which cost over $20 billion, you know. So people are coming in now. They realize that yes, Africa is open for business and people are ready to go into these sectors.”
Last month, Dangote selected Kenya’s Lamu County as the preferred location for a proposed Sh2.2 trillion oil refinery, a project that could significantly reshape East Africa’s petroleum industry.
The planned facility will have the capacity to process 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, making it the largest refinery in East Africa and the second largest on the continent after Dangote’s refinery in Lagos, Nigeria.
A site has already been identified on Lamu Island, with preliminary design, engineering works and soil testing currently underway.
People familiar with the project said construction is expected to take about five years, with financing set to come from a mix of internal resources, corporate bonds and proceeds from an initial public offering.
The development follows Dangote’s announcement in April that he intended to expand his refining business into East Africa through a facility modelled on his flagship refinery in Nigeria.
