Dangote says he plans to invest up to $1bn in Zimbabwe

By Agencies

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest person, plans to invest as much as $1 billion in Zimbabwe to build cement and power plants as well as a fuel pipeline.

The Nigerian billionaire spoke to reporters after meeting Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa in Harare on Wednesday.

The tycoon is adding Zimbabwe to his list of investment destinations, which span several countries across the continent from Ethiopia to Zambia.

Dangote, who operates cement companies in 10 countries, previously expressed an interest in similar investments in Zimbabwe in 2015, including plans for his Dangote Cement Plc to build a $400 million plant with processing capacity of 1.5 million tons a year.

The deal, along with others proposed at the time, failed to materialise after talks with then-President Robert Mugabe.

Mnangagwa has “turned the economy around,” Dangote said. “That really gave us the confidence that this is the right time for us to come and invest.”

Dangote has a net worth of $29.8 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.