Aliko Dangote, chairman of the Dangote Group, has praised the recent economic reforms implemented by President Bola Tinubu.
Despite suffering a loss of over $3 billion due to the devaluation of Nigeria’s currency, Dangote believed that the President made the right decision.
Dangote, accompanied by Bill Gates, a one-time world richest man, paid a visit to Tinubu in order to inform him about their plans for Nigeria.
This meeting served as an opportunity for Dangote to express his support for the President’s policies.
Despite experiencing a significant decrease in his net worth and losing his position as Africa’s richest person on Forbes’ billionaire list, Aliko Dangote commended President Bola Tinubu for his policies regarding the devaluation of the naira and removal of petrol subsidies.
The chairman of the Dangote Group specifically praised the elimination of Nigeria’s multiple foreign exchange rates and the decision to allow the local currency to float freely.
These policies were the primary reasons behind Dangote’s substantial financial losses amounting to over $3 billion.
President Tinubu had announced the permanent removal of petrol subsidy during his inaugural speech and expressed the country’s commitment to unifying the exchange rate.
The Central Bank of Nigeria subsequently consolidated the various forex windows into the I&E wind, resulting in the implementation of this measure.
The introduction of this policy in 2016 led to a significant depreciation of the naira, which had a ripple effect throughout the market.
According to reports, Aliko Dangote lost his position as Africa’s wealthiest individual on the Forbes list to Johann Rupert of South Africa.
The devaluation of the country’s currency had a severe impact on Dangote’s fortunes since most of his company’s stocks, especially Dangote Cement, are quoted in the local currency on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
On June 19, 2023, the billionaire visited Tinubu and praised the economic reforms implemented by Nigeria’s new leader.
Dangote said:
“All is great, and things are going well, and we also congratulated the president on the removal of subsidy,” the billionaire said.
“I think he is doing a great job. I expect that it’s going to be better for everybody. There will be more money now to put into education, health, infrastructure, and other areas, and our role is to help support him to make sure he achieves his vision.
“Our visit was a courtesy call. Bill Gates and I came in to congratulate the President for his successful election and also to brief him on what Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Aliko Dangote Foundation have been doing in Nigeria,” he said.
“And also to show our commitment to do more and to help Nigerians so that our health sector will be better for everyone.
“Nigerians have been getting quite a lot from both foundations, and we expect more from the government in terms of cooperation, and we will also do more from our side.” Dangote further said.
Tinubu plans to distribute cheap fuel as the cost of powering 7.5KVA generator increases to N1,000/hour
Legit.ng reported that President Bola Tinubu has started putting structural measures in place to make cheap fuel available through compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquified natural gas (LPG) to stem the effects of the subsidy removal.
Mele Kyari, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, revealed this after a meeting with Tunubu on Wednesday, June 14, 2023.
Kyari stated that the plans would roll out soon and that the structural plan was part of the palliative measures for Nigerians.
