Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has declared that the controversial Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State will never work, despite decades of government promises.
Speaking in a video shared by TVC on Tuesday, Dangote stressed that no nation can grow without a steel industry but insisted that Ajaokuta has become outdated and practically impossible to revive.
“There is no nation that you can build without a steel industry. But honestly, Ajaokuta will not work. We can keep deceiving ourselves and keep being passionate about it, but it’s not possible,” he said.
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He likened efforts to revive the plant to “bringing someone from the graveyard to run a 100-meter race,” adding that technology has moved far beyond what Ajaokuta represents.
Built between 1979 and the 1990s, the multi-billion-dollar project has never produced steel, remaining moribund for over two decades. Successive governments have poured money into attempts at reviving it, including a $496 million settlement with an Indian firm in 2022 and a more recent agreement with a Russian consortium to rehabilitate the plant.
In August 2023, Steel Development Minister Shuaibu Audu announced a roadmap to revive the company, promising to complete the project and regulate the sector. Yet, Dangote’s blunt assessment suggests that Nigeria may need to shift focus toward new technology and modern steel ventures rather than clinging to a failed dream.
For many Nigerians, Ajaokuta has become a symbol of wasted opportunities, corruption, and dashed industrial hopes.
