President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has announced plans by the Aliko Dangote Foundation to partner with state governments to empower up to two million vulnerable women across Nigeria through participation in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited Initial Public Offering (IPO).
Dangote disclosed this in New York during the 81st United Nations General Assembly while responding to a question from the Secretary to the Yobe State Government, Dr. Goje Mohammed, on how government-private sector partnerships could support conflict-affected communities, particularly widows, in building sustainable financial futures.
According to Dangote, the Foundation will collaborate with state governments to enable vulnerable women, including widows and victims of conflict, to participate in the refinery’s share offering and build long-term wealth through equity ownership.
He said the initiative would help broaden access to Nigeria’s capital market by creating opportunities for women who might otherwise be excluded from investing in one of Africa’s largest industrial enterprises.
“We are partnering with state governments to ensure that widows and other vulnerable women are able to buy shares in the refinery,” Dangote said.
He added that the Foundation would provide additional support to women who participate in the IPO by donating shares to complement their investments.
“Beyond enabling them to buy shares, the Foundation will also support them by donating additional shares that they can hold as savings for the future,” he said.
Dangote said the programme is targeting approximately two million women nationwide.
“We are looking at reaching about two million women through this initiative,” he added.
The proposed intervention forms part of the broader objectives of the Dangote Refinery “People’s IPO”, which is designed to expand public participation in the ownership of the refinery and enable more Nigerians to benefit from the value generated by the major private-sector investment.
The initiative is expected to be particularly relevant to conflict-affected states such as Yobe, where widows and vulnerable households continue to face economic difficulties arising from prolonged insecurity.
By facilitating access to investment opportunities, the Foundation’s programme seeks to provide participating women with a pathway to asset ownership, financial inclusion and long-term wealth creation.
Dangote stressed that collaboration with state governments would provide a structured framework for supporting vulnerable women to participate in the IPO, while positioning investment and equity ownership as instruments for economic empowerment and social development.
Through the initiative, the Dangote Refinery IPO is expected to extend ownership opportunities to vulnerable segments of the population, enabling more women to build financial assets and participate directly in the growth of the landmark industrial enterprise.
