Category: PRESS RELEASE

… To Aid Traffic Management In Lagos, Ogun

Leading Cement manufacturer, Dangote Cement Plc has donated Pick-Up vans to the traffic management agencies in Lagos and Ogun States in demonstration of its commitment to public safety, infrastructure support, and national development.

Handing over the keys to the leaderships of Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE) and Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) at a brief ceremony held at the Project office of the Dangote Group in Ikeja, the Dangote Cement’s Head, Social Performance, Mr. Wakeel Olayiwola expressed the Company’s management desire to contribute to the efforts being made by state governments to ease movement of people, good and services and reduce manhours wasted in vehicular traffic.

“As a leading player in our nation’s industrial landscape, Dangote Cement Plc understands that our operations go beyond business. We are part of the communities we serve, and we recognize the critical role that efficient traffic management plays in ensuring the safety of lives, the smooth flow of goods, and the overall well-being of our cities.”, he stated.

According to him, the gesture is not just a contribution, it is a partnership. A partnership built on shared values of safety, efficiency, and service to the Nigerian people, noting that the vehicles would support the agencies’ efforts at enhancing rapid response to traffic incidents, improving patrol coverage across key transport corridors and strengthening enforcement of traffic regulations for safer roads.

He pointed out that it is the belief of the Dangote Cement management that when the public and private sectors collaborate meaningfully, the results would be transformative adding that “the donation is a testament to its belief in shared responsibility—where corporate entities like ours actively support the institutions that keep our society functioning.”

“We commend the traffic management Agencies for your tireless work in managing the complexities of urban mobility. Your dedication inspires us, and we are proud to stand with you. As we hand over these vehicles, we reaffirm our commitment to being a responsible corporate citizen. We will continue to explore ways to support traffic safety, driver education, and infrastructure development across Nigeria.

Receiving the keys of the vehicles one after the other, both the Permanent Secretary, Ogun State Ministry of Transport who led the team of TRACE, Mrs. Aderonke Tokunbo-Peters and the General Manager of LASTMA, Olalekan Bakare-Oki thanked Dangote Cement Plc for the good gesture and promised good use of the vehicles for the betterment of the society.

Mrs. Tokunbo-Peters described the donation as one of the moments “that stand motivating in the collective journey towards safer, more efficient, and more responsive traffic management in our cities. This donation is not just a gift of vehicles; it is a powerful statement of corporate responsibility, community partnership, and shared vision for public safety and service excellence.

“We are immensely grateful to Dangote Cement which we are proud to host in our state of Ogun, for recognizing the critical role our agency plays in maintaining order on our roads and for choosing to invest in our capacity to serve. These vehicles will enhance our mobility, improve our response times, and strengthen our presence across key traffic corridors.”

In his own remark, the General Manager of LASTMA, Bakare-Oki said the donation was a statement to what can be achieved when the private and public sectors work hand in hand.

“It reflects a deep understanding that traffic management is not just a government responsibility — it is a shared civic duty that affects every commuter, every business, and every family.

“As we receive this vehicle today, we reaffirm our commitment to using it judiciously, maintaining it diligently, and deploying it strategically to improve traffic flow, reduce accidents, and ensure the safety of all road users.”

He also parted his men and officers on the back saying; “Let me also take this moment to thank our dedicated officers and staff whose tireless efforts make our roads safer every day. With the new resources, their work will be even more impactful.

“To Dangote Cement, we say thank you — not just for the vehicles, but for believing in our mission. We look forward to deepening this partnership and exploring more ways to collaborate for the greater good. Together, let us continue to drive progress towards a safer, smarter and more connected city.”

…lauds role as highest industrial taxpayer

The Ogun State Internal Revenue Service (OGIRS) has formally commended Dangote Cement Ibese Plant for its outstanding commitment to tax compliance and its consistent role as the highest tax-paying industrial organisation in the state.

OGIRS while on a familiarisation tour of the 12mmtp Cement Plant in Ibese led by its Director, Field Operations, Mrs. Oluwaseun Olajube praised the company management’s dedication to fulfilling its civic obligations, noting that Dangote Cement Ibese Plant has set a benchmark for corporate responsibility and financial transparency in Ogun State.

The agency also reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening partnerships with key stakeholders across Ogun State’s industrial sector, emphasising the importance of collaboration in driving sustainable economic growth and revenue generation.

Impressed by Dangote Cement, Ibese Plant’s tax credentials, Mrs. Olajube expressed satisfaction with the Company and urged it not to drop its guard, while also seeking timely documentation as well as enhanced collaboration, particularly with the Yewa North Zonal Office of the Service.

She expressed the Agency’s commitment to strengthening alliance with the Ibese Plant in the spirit of transparency, accountability, and mutual benefit and reaffirmed its commitment to fostering stronger partnerships with key stakeholders in the state’s industrial sector.

The Revenue Service boss stated, “Dangote Cement Ibese Plant continues to demonstrate excellence in tax compliance, and we are proud to acknowledge their contribution to the economic development of our state.”

OGIRS reaffirmed its commitment to fostering a business-friendly environment that rewards transparency and compliance, while encouraging other companies to emulate the example set by Dangote Cement.

Receiving the OGIRS team, Dangote Cement Ibese Plant Director, Mr. Ayyagari Subbaraidu, expressed the management’s appreciation to the Revenue Agency for the commitment and recognition demonstrated with the visit.

The recognition give to Dangote Cement, he said, was not just about numbers – “it is about leadership, integrity, and the positive impact of responsible corporate citizenship,”

He said the revenue Agency’s praise from the underscored the importance of private sector collaboration in driving sustainable revenue generation and supporting public infrastructure and services.

Subbaraidu said; “We recognise that tax revenue is the backbone of economic development of States and remain committed to upholding the principles of compliance, accountability, and transparency in all our engagements with Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government.”

The visit marks a significant step in strengthening public-private sector synergy aimed at driving sustainable development and economic growth in Ogun State.

Recall that the President and Chief Executive of the Pan-African Conglomerate, Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote had disclosed that the Group had paid over N402 billion in taxes in 2024 to the government, making it the highest taxpayer in the country.

The disclosure came in the wake of series of award recently bestowed on the Company and its subsidiaries as Nigeria’s best compliant taxpayer business organisation and FMDQ Gold award winner for being the most active corporate organisation in the foreign exchange market.

The DIL was named Nigeria’s most tax-compliant business organisation, a development Dangote described as a testament to its unwavering commitment to fiscal responsibility and transparency. Additionally, the company was honoured by FMDQ for its outstanding performance as the most active corporate entity in the foreign exchange market.

Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the nation’s tax regulators had during its Special Day at Lagos International Trade fair in 2024 adjudged Dangote Industries Limited as the most compliant taxpayers in Nigeria.

Its subsidiary, Dangote Cement Plc., in another development emerged as the Largest Commercial Paper Quotation on FMDQ and Single Largest Corporate Debt Issue on FMDQ during its last GOLD award held in Lagos.

The FMDQ GOLD Awards, (Global Competitiveness, Operational Excellence, Liquidity and Diversity), is a corporate tradition that recognises the resilience and agility of the Nigerian financial markets’ participants.

The award acknowledges the valuable efforts of these stakeholders, whose participation in the FMDQ markets and across the financial market infrastructure value chain of FMDQ’s businesses – Securities Exchange, Central Counterparty and Depository – have positively shaped the course of the markets and invariably impacted the development of the Nigerian economy.

…expresses commitment to absolute safer roads policy

Management of Dangote Cement Plc (DCP) has expressed its irrevocable commitment to training and constant retraining of its truck drivers to promote operational efficiency and safe driving across Nigeria.

Speaking during its 2025 Annual Drivers’ Retreat themed, Dangote Cement’s Group Managing Director, Arvind Pathak emphasised that as a leading cement manufacturer with thousands of trucks in its fleet, safety on the road remains the company’s core mandate. He said the essence of the yearly training is to remind the drivers of the core values of the brand and ensure that they are all committed to the Absolute Safer Road Policy of the Group.

The training exercise for the drivers in DCP Ibese Plant took place in Ilaro area of Ogun State, with over 900 drivers in attendance. Another extensive re-training exercise for more drivers has been scheduled to take place in Obajana, Kogi State next week.

The Dangote Cement boss reaffirmed the Company’s commitment to road safety, transparency, appropriate ethical conduct, and provision of detailed clarity on the comprehensive systems and procedures to mitigate against any incident along roads across the country.

Mr. Pathak said Dangote was a responsible organisation that consistently cooperates with the Nigeria Police and other relevant authorities in the investigation of reported incidents with support of all lawful processes, aimed at establishing the facts and routinely implement recommendations that strengthen public safety.

He explained that that every driver employed by Dangote Cement is required to undergo an extensive and rigorously structured recruitment process that includes Valid Driver’s license class G, background verification of both the driver and their guarantors, comprehensive medical evaluation, including vision screening (eye test), blood pressure checks, body mass index (BMI), random blood sugar (RBS) test as well as drug and alcohol testing.

“Other recruitment screening covers usage within a three-month detection window, ensuring identifying any history of substance use before employment, completion of a two-week intensive training programme, which consists of twelve safety modules, practical driving assessments, and written examinations”, the Cement GMD stated.

According to him, “In the past two months alone, over 2,000 prospective drivers have successfully completed this process. Only those who meet all required standards were engaged and certified to operate any Dangote Group vehicles. Our commitment to safety extends beyond recruitment. All drivers undergo mandatory pre-trip medical assessments, conducted by licensed nurses and doctors.

“These include regular checks on blood pressure, vision, and overall fitness, ensuring drivers are physically and mentally fit to operate safely. To enforce compliance with our zero-tolerance policy on substance use, random drug tests are conducted routinely across our operations.”

Mr. Pathak stated that Dangote Cement would continue to collaborate with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and other regulatory agencies to ensure that all training, compliance, and operational processes are not only standardised but also continuously improved, adding that these authorities are also actively involved in monitoring and evaluation of their safety practices.

He maintained that Dangote Cement remains fully committed to strengthening driver onboarding and training, enforcing strict safety and behavioural standards, applying punitive measures to curb errant driving, collaborating with government agencies, regulators, and communities to improve road safety, ensuring transparency, accountability, and compassion in everything they do.

Also addressing the assembled drivers, the Group Chief, Health Safety Social and Environment Officer & Sustainability function, Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Dr. James Adenuga stressed the importance of safety protocols and noted that the process was not just to train the drivers on the consequences but to continuously remind them of essentials of safety guides.

Adenuga further stated that the regular training was to educate them in the language they understand and teach them how the training matters to them. He gave insights on the measures put in place to ensure the right individuals are recruited as drivers, saying some of the qualifications for recruiting the drivers included minimum of secondary school certificate, ability to speak English language with writing and reading skills, free of substance abuse, 2-5 years driving experience, possession of  Class-G  drivers’ license, guarantors and rigorous training among other measures.

“We also partner Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to train and prepare them for professional driving so as to equip and give them the basics and fundamentals to prevent them for reckless driving. We equally have a process to give recognition and award to those that profess conduct and good behaved drivers among their peers,” he added.

Taking the drivers through some requirements for safe driving, a Road Safety Expert, Mr. Oje Ebhota explained that the choice of the topic for his paper centred on safety driving habits for accident-free journeys.

Mr. Ebhota listed acts such as aggressiveness, impatient driving, use of phone while driving, taking alcoholic drink and disobedience to traffic signs, as negatives against the tenet of safe driving.

He advised the assembled drivers to be conscious of dangerous overtaking and to drive within the driving limit of 60km per hour so that they do not veer off the road and cause accidents that could affect negatively other road users.

According to him, “let me tell you all, drivers are the ambassadors of Dangote Group. Aside being ambassadors, you are also stakeholders that should be careful and consider other road users as important while on the road.”

For its excellence in corporate transparency and governance, Dangote Cement Plc has been honoured as the Platinum winner of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and NGX Regulation Limited (NGX REGCO)’s Corporate Reporting Award for the financial year ending 2023.

Organised by ICAN-NGX REGCO, the event was meant to celebrate excellence in corporate transparency and governance. It was a moment of positive appraisal for the Cement company’s adherence to corporate governance with other winners comprising of MTN Nigeria, Seplat Energy, Stanbic IBTC Holdings, GTCO, Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa, and International Breweries.

In the Corporate Reporting Award guidelines issued by ICAN-NGX REGCO, thirty listed companies were evaluated across three key categories with marks allotted for compliance. The categories and allotted marks are; financial reporting taking 35 percent, corporate governance allotted 30 percent and sustainability reporting accounting for 35 percent.  The awards were ranked in Platinum, Gold and Silver categories.

Dangote Cement, according to the Assessment Panel, excelled in all the assessment parameters as it emerged the platinum award winner, MTN won Gold and Seplat Energy carted home the Silver award.

President of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Mr. Davidson Alaribe, the platinum award is conferred upon the overall top-performing company across all three categories. This prestigious recognition is reserved for an organisation that demonstrates excellence in corporate reporting, effectively addressing all key elements evaluated.

He explained that the final score is derived from a combination of weighted averages and a scoring matrix based on the rigorous and independent evaluations of individual assessors.

Said he; “This award underscores our unwavering commitment to promoting transparency, accountability, and sustainable corporate practices within, the Nigeria Capital Market.

“The demand for corporate entities to disclose their environment, social and governance (ESG) impact beyond the confines of their traditional financial reporting has grown exponentially in recent years. The shift reflects a global call for greater transparency, accountability, and sustainability in business practices.”

He then described the honourees as exemplary, stating that their achievements reflect a commitment to the highest standards in corporate reporting. According to him, they’ve gone beyond compliance to set a benchmark for trust, growth, and sustainability in Nigeria’s financial landscape.

In his remark, the Chief Executive Officer, NGX Regulation Limited, Mr. Olufemi Shobanjo described the award as the celebration of outstanding achievements in corporate reporting among the listed companies over the past year and that it has continued to underscore the commitment to promoting excellence and transparency in financial reporting.

According to him, effective corporate reporting is vital for fostering trust and accountability in the capital market as it enhances the investors’ confidence and promotes best practices within the industry.

Dangote Cement is Africa’s leading cement producer with 52.0Mta capacity across Africa. A fully integrated quarry-to-customer producer, with a production capacity of 35.25Mta in its home market, Nigeria.  Obajana plant in Kogi state, Nigeria, is the largest in Africa with 16.25Mta of capacity across five lines; Ibese plant in Ogun State has four cement lines with a combined installed capacity of 12Mta; Gboko plant in Benue state has 4Mta; and Okpella plant in Edo state has 3Mta. Through recent investments, Dangote Cement has eliminated Nigeria’s dependence on imported cement and has transformed the nation into an exporter of cement and clinker, serving neighbouring countries.