Dangote Cement empowers youth in host community for self-reliance

Dangote Cement’s Ibese plant had rolled out the drum in December to honor the residents of its host communities amid ceremony and pomp.

It served as a platform for bringing stakeholders together and fostering relationships with the management of the pan-African cement company. Community Day was the name of the occasion. The highlight of the celebration was the opening of multi-million Naira projects under its community empowerment programs, which had many beneficiaries in attendance, including students, farmers, youths, and vulnerable women.

Since the company berthed at Ibese, in the Yewa division of the Ogun state, the colorful event, which has been dubbed as unprecedented, has included participation from the royal fathers as well. The Ibese Plant management made promises to the leaders of the host communities about a more solid relationship through a partnership that works during the signing of an enhanced Community Development Agreement (CDA), which took place months prior to the Community Day.

In fact, the Ibese Plant director, Mr. Azad Nawabuddin, referred to the occasion as a manifestation of the business’ dedication to fostering a positive relationship between the Ibese Plant and its Host Communities.

He described the new, improved CDA as a turning point in Ibese Plant’s more than ten years of existence, with the primary goal of celebrating and thanking our key stakeholders for giving us the social license to operate sustainably while also taking stock of our imprints during the calendar year.

The Aboro of Ibeseland, Oba Rotimi Oluwaseyi Mulero, one of the traditional leaders present on the Day, commended Dangote Cement management for its persistent efforts to positively impact the host communities, calling the company’s social performance profile very impressive.
In light of what Dangote Cement has been doing for the community, he explained, it is incumbent upon local officials and all residents to pay it forward and maintain peace for the benefit of everyone so that the company can continue to provide more services.

The commissioning of the solar-powered borehole in Abule Oke, in the Local Government of Yewa North, and the graduation of youths who have been undergoing training under the Company’s Youths Empowerment Program were two events that the cement plant held last week as part of its ongoing commitment to serving the communities.

About 30 young people from some of the host communities completed the training program developed by Dangote Cement Plc, Ibese Plant as a means of reshaping society and giving young people employment opportunities. The empowerment program, which gave the youths the chance to receive training in domestic electrical installation, wiring, and maintenance, was designed to hasten the social and economic development of host communities and to support the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
In addition to the training, which was implemented by the Ibese Plant in collaboration with Industrial Training Fund, the youth were also given start-up tools for the immediate start of their profession after the training (ITF).

The empowerment initiative was a demonstration of the company’s commitment to the ongoing socioeconomic development of the host communities in accordance with the Community Development Agreement signed in 2022, according to Mr. Azad Nawabuddin, Ibese Plant Director of Dangote Cement, who addressed the beneficiaries at the program’s closing ceremony.

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He asserted that the company was being proactive by involving the community members, especially the youths, with such vigor and energy, and that the company’s social development strategy does not support giving people fish to eat but instead concentrates on teaching people how to fish. Instead, we encourage and support their independence and self-reliance.

Azad listed previous empowerment programs of the Plant that have helped 275 impoverished youths so far. These programs include training in catering and event management, tailoring and fashion design, and acupuncture. They are all aimed at reducing unemployment gaps in the local communities and ultimately improving the standard of living.

He praised the recipients for their will and zeal in wanting to learn new skills to improve their lives and urged them to use the technical and entrepreneurial knowledge they had learned during the training to create sustainable businesses. He also urged them to commit to continuing to develop their skills and expertise in line with trends around the world.

Mrs. Funmi Coker, the deputy area manager of the Industrial Training Fund’s Abeokuta Area Office, praised Dangote Cement Plc’s Ibese Plant for investing resources in the development of youths’ capacity in pertinent trade areas so that they could benefit themselves and their immediate communities. She commended the Company for working consistently with the nation to meet its training goals and urged other corporate entities to do the same.

Dayo Ogunyinka, vice chairman of the Community Joint Consultative Committee, expressed satisfaction with the company’s yearly empowerment initiative. He urged the recipients to view the gift as a chance to change their lives that could lead them to the pinnacle of success and to make sure that the starter packs they received are used for the intended purpose.

Ms. Elegbede Ganiyat, from the host community of Iboro, one of the beneficiaries, expressed gratitude to Dangote Cement for believing it was worthwhile to invest in the development of the youths and described her training experience as enriching and lasting. She assured the recipients that they have been adequately prepared to carve out a niche for themselves in the local and national electrical services market.

At a ceremony attended by the Baale of Abule-Oke, Chief Ramoni Akinsanya, the Olu of Imasayi, Oba Lukman Kuoye, other community leaders, youths, women, and other locals, the Cement Company donated a multi-million naira solar-powered bore hole to the residents of Abule-Oke, the host community.

In his remarks at the handover, the Plant Director, Mr. Azad Nawabuddin, emphasized the importance of water to human survival and gave the community advice on how to make the most of the borehole facility and set up a plan to ensure its security, maintenance, and sustenance as part of their equity contribution to the project.

The management of Dangote Cement was praised by the Olu of Imasayi for being the lighthouse that illuminated all of Yewaland and for the company’s dedication to raising the standard of living in its host communities.

He urged the residents of Abule Oke to make sure the borehole facility is preserved so that future generations can profit from the project, as only the facility’s responsible use will inspire the company to make additional investments in community infrastructure improvements.

The youth leader, Mr. Rafiu Akinola, expressed the gratitude of the people of Abule Oke to the company for providing the water facility, saying that the action was timely and valuable, especially given the fact that it is solar-powered and spares the community the expense of purchasing fuel for and maintaining a generator.

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The home market for Dangote Cement is Nigeria, where the company began producing cement in 2007. With plans to expand capacity in the upcoming years to meet the rising demand for cement in Nigeria and West Africa, it currently operates three fully integrated cement plants totaling 32.3 Mta in the cities of Obajana, Ibese, and Gboko.

Ibese Cement Plant, a 12.0 Mta facility in Ogun State, produces cement for export to nearby West African nations as well as Lagos, a market in the region’s expanding South-West. The plant’s size was doubled in late 2014 after it was put into service in 2012 with a 6.0Mta capacity.