•Aliko Dangote

President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has announced a significant increase in the Group’s investment in Ethiopia, rising from $2.5 billion to over $4 billion.

“This makes Ethiopia the second-largest recipient of our investments in Africa, accounting for nearly nine percent of our continental outlay between now and 2030,” said Dangote, describing Ethiopia as a key strategic destination for Dangote Group’s long-term investments.

The expanded scope includes critical infrastructure such as a 110-kilometre pipeline, a 120MW power plant, a polypropylene packaging facility, and a two-million-tonne NPK blending plant, among other new components.

Dangote stated this while addressing journalists in Gode, Ethiopia’s Somali region, during a high-profile visit hosted by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, a statement by Dangote Group said.

According to the statement, the prime minister personally received Dangote and accompanied him to inspect the site of the proposed fertiliser plant, where construction activities are already underway.

Speaking on the strategic importance of fertiliser in agricultural productivity, Dangote noted that Africa’s food insecurity challenges were largely due to limited access to key inputs.

“Africa holds immense agricultural potential, yet continues to grapple with food insecurity due to limited access to fertiliser.

Through our investments, we are committed to reversing this trend by boosting productivity, empowering farmers, and advancing a sustainable path to food self-sufficiency”, he said.

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has approved the investment of pension assets in the proposed initial public offering (IPO) of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, opening the door for pension fund administrators (PFAs) to participate in one of Africa’s biggest industrial projects.

The decision effectively grants PFAs access to part of Nigeria’s N29.5 trillion pension assets for investment in the refinery, marking it one of the most significant regulatory adjustments in the pension industry in recent years.

PenCom, in a circular displayed on its website, described the approval as a “specific and singular exception” to existing investment regulations because of the refinery’s strategic importance to the Nigerian economy.

Under current pension investment guidelines, PFAs are generally prohibited from investing contributors’ funds in companies without a proven history of profitability and dividend payments.

However, the commission said the refinery’s scale, financial structure and expected economic impact justified the waiver.

The Central Bank of Nigeria says 63.3 percent of Nigerians want interest rates reduced ahead of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting scheduled for May 19 and 20, 2026.

The apex bank disclosed this in its April 2026 Inflation Expectations Survey Report, released by its Statistics Department under the Economic Policy Directorate on its website.

The report found that most respondents preferred lower borrowing costs despite persistent inflationary pressures across the economy.

The survey revealed high public engagement with CBN communications (92.1 percent), a general perception of transparency (93.3 percent), and a strong desire for a reduction in interest rates (63.3 per cent).

In the report, 26.0 percent of respondents wanted interest rates retained at current levels, while 10.7 per cent supported a further rate hike.

The development comes as the MPC prepares to take another decision on the Monetary Policy Rate amid concerns over inflation, exchange rate pressures, insecurity, and rising energy costs.

The survey showed that inflation perception worsened in April 2026, with 67.2 percent of respondents describing inflation as high, up from 56.4 percent recorded in March 2026.