‘Accumulating Capabilities As A Moat’: The Interesting Saga Of Aliko Dangote
The Oasis Reporters
October 11, 2025
While debating the industrial scuffle between leading Nigerian industrialist, billionaire Aliko Dangote and the NUPENG (trade union of Petroleum and Gas) workers it was not difficult to look at the Nigerian economy dominated by Crude Oil extraction and sales, one could not but consider that for perhaps close to four decades or more, Nigeria had suffered shortages of petroleum products, a commodity that it produces in abundance while NUPENG was watching and doing practically nothing significant to ensure that the situation did not exist, it becomes apparent that they should lose public sympathy and support.
Aliko Dangote came up singlehandedly to rescue the nation by building a huge refinery whose output dwarfs the production of all the four government owned refineries combined.
NUPENG has been trying desperately to disrupt the process because they want to muscle in where someone else has sown.
Therefore when Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima called Dangote an institution, he was right.
And Dangote used the opportunities on ground to execute his businesses, something anyone with the right gumption, acumen, sagacity and street credibility could have done. Dangote did it, and some people are trying to disrupt it.
In the rules book, even billionaires may need to set their money aside then go to source for funding from financial institutions who are ever more than willing to lend to real sectors. After all, when loans are given and repaid within time limits, everyone comes ahead. The financial institution gets it’s interest payments while the investor takes his profits to rise further as a richer billionaire.
That’s the rules book.
Dangote used it to full measure as long as financial institutions continue to receive deposits, they must lend it out to make profit and remain in business. This means that if an investor is trustworthy and he is willing to keep growing and expanding, there’s just no limit.
Therefore Dangote who came from commodities like Sugar, pasta etc moved on by adding the portfolio of Cement, Crude Oil refining etc, and he has also entered into automobiles to make trucks that can carry his cement everywhere, distribute his Petrol and Gas as well as his commodities.
Costs are then reduced no matter how slightly and this becomes a relief for the citizenry.
All users of his products are certainly not praying for the disruptors who have outplayed themselves and no one welcomes them.
Kudos to Alhaji Dangote who is savvy at leveraging and moving forward.
Greg Abolo
