Time to Produce Our Own Drugs, End Health Tourism – Dangote

Aliko Dangote, chairman of the Dangote Group, has urged Nigerians to stop engaging in medical tourism and to begin local drug production.
This was stated by the billionaire businessman during a panel discussion at the Goalkeepers event organized by the Gates Foundation, which took place in Lagos on Wednesday.

He stressed that it is vital for all Nigerians to have the ability to treat themselves in Nigeria when they become ill. He suggested that collaborating with Bill Gates and the Gates Foundation was crucial for accomplishing this.

Dangote stated, “Our priority should be to put an end to health tourism and begin manufacturing our own medications.

„Es ist nun wichtig, dass wir im Krankheitsfall nicht alle ins Ausland reisen müssen. Dafür sollten wir eine Kooperation mit Bill (Gates) eingehen.“ ”

He remembered that the Dangote Foundation, in collaboration with the Gates Foundation, has contributed to the eradication of Polio in Nigeria and has made significant efforts to enhance nutrition.

As he sees it, his company has accomplished a great deal in business by turning many things around. He noted that while Nigeria was formerly the world’s second-largest cement importer, it now exports more cement than any other country in Africa.

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Dangote further emphasized the difficulties farmers once faced in obtaining fertilizer. Today, he has constructed the world’s second-largest fertilizer plant from scratch.

“Currently, Nigeria not only exports but actually sends 37% of our fertilizer to the United States,” he stated.

With regard to petroleum, Dangote asserted that he accomplished something unprecedented by constructing a refinery with a capacity of 650,000 bpd. He disclosed that the Dangote Refinery exported 400,000 metric tons of petrol in May 2025 alone.

He stated that this has eliminated Nigeria’s dependence on imported petrol, as the country no longer brings in the product.