The federal government has granted Dangote Cement permission to resume exports across its land borders, Newsonspot.com.ng learnt Tuesday.
This is coming a year after the ‘giant of Africa’ shut its land borders against trade with neighboring countries.
President Muhammadu Buhari gave the authorization for Dangote to export cement to Niger and Togo in the third quarter for the first time in ten months.
This was confirmed by Michel Puchercos, chief executive officer of the company, on an investor call in Lagos.
The export was made possible “through authorization given by this administration,” he said.
The exemption to Dangote Cement is seen as a softening of the government’s position on a border closure that started in August last year, and could open the way for other bushinesses to fully resume exports across the country’s land barriers.
Nigerian authorities closed borders with neighboring countries including Benin and Niger to curb smuggling and boost local production.
Although the blockade encouraged the consumption of locally grown produce such as rice, it hurt factories across West Africa, which rely on Nigeria’s market of 200 million people.
Dangote resumed land export with “restricted volumes,” and plans to grow the trade using the sea channels, according to Puchercos.
