Present at the inauguration of the Ruto was Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote. Dangote is a Nigerian billionaire businessman who is the founder and CEO of the Dangote Group, the largest industrial conglomerate in West Africa.
Kenya’s new President Dr William Ruto has slashed the price of fertiliser from the current Ksh 6,500 to Ksh 3,500 for a 50-kilogramme bag for farmers from next week.
Present at the inauguration of the Ruto was Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote. Dangote is a Nigerian billionaire businessman who is the founder and CEO of the Dangote Group, the largest industrial conglomerate in West Africa. Dangote Fertiliser Plant is Africa's largest Granulated Urea Fertiliser complex. It occupies 500 hectares of land in Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos Nigeria and was built at a cost of $2.5 billion.
During his inaugural speech as Kenya’s fifth President, Dr Ruto said his administration has already made available 1.4 million bags of fertiliser to help shore up food production with the expected short rains, KBC reports.
“I appeal to county governments in eastern, central and western regions where we are expecting short rains to work with us in make sure that this fertiliser is available to all farmers in that region so that we can begin the journey to increase our food production initiative,” said President Ruto.
While making the maiden speech, the President admitted the current high prices of food and transport, saying the current interventions have not borne any fruits.
Tea farmers across the country will also be beneficiaries of subsidised fertiliser after the new administration engaged Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) for the immediate release of affordable fertiliser.
Twenty counties which are facing severe drought will also benefit from immediate food interventions by the new administration.
This comes as the Kenya Kwanza administration seeks to face out subsidy programmes that have been extended to fuel, fertiliser and seeds by President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration.
On fuel subsidy alone, the immediate government has spent a total of Ksh 144 billion with Ksh 60 billion in the last four reviews alone to stabilise fuel prices a move which President Ruto says would push total subsidy to Ksh 280 billion by the end of the current financial year.
He also took a swipe at the Ksh 7 billion food subsidy programme announced by the previous administration to ease maize prices to Ksh 100 from Ksh 210 terming it as having no impact.
SaharaReporters in April 2021 reported that Dangote Cement Group was selling its product in the Southern African country, Zambia for at most 110 Kwacha which equals to about N1, 800 in Nigeria, while the same product was being sold for not less than N3, 500 in Nigeria at the time.
The Zambia Board of Commissioners of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission said it ordered Lafarge Zambia Plc, Dangote Cement Zambia Limited and Mpande Limestone Limited to revert to the cement prices ranging between Kwacha 99 to Kwacha 110 after there was an uproar over its recent increment.
The Board also fined Lafarge Zambia Plc and Mpande Limestone Limited 10% of their annual turnovers for the year 2019 and another 10% of their 2020 annual turnovers for price fixing and division of markets.
The Board, however, said it was lenient with Dangote Cement Zambia Limited, for having cooperated with the Commission during investigations.
According to Zambia News, the decision to fine Lafarge Zambia Plc and Mpande Limestone Limited was made during the 49th Board of Commissioners Meeting for the Adjudication of Cases held in Lusaka on March 30, 2021.
This was after an exhaustive investigation by the Commission initiated in January 2020 following the Commission’s observation of a sustained increment of cement prices from an average of K55 to K100 per 50kg bag between July 2019 and January 2020.
The continuous price increment of cement by the parties led the Commission to suspect that there was possible collusion and an agreement to fix the prices of cement and the Commission carried out investigations for a year.
In a statement issued by CCPC Senior Public Relations Officer, Namukolo Kasumpa, the Board also ordered Lafarge Zambia Plc, Dangote Cement Zambia Limited and Mpande Limestone Limited to revert to the pre-cartel prices ranging between USD 4.50 – USD 5 (K99 – K110) for a period of one year from the date of receipt of the Board decision pursuant to Section 59 (3) (b) of the Act.
“Additionally, that Lafarge Zambia Plc, Dangote Cement Zambia Limited, Mpande Limestone Limited submit monthly average ex-works prices and any price adjustments be indexed to the exchange rate and be submitted to the Commission for a review pursuant to Section 58 (1) of the Act,” the Board had stated.
The Board further ordered the three cement companies to develop and implement compliance programmes in their respective firms within 90 days of receiving the directive.
“Furthermore, the Board has directed Lafarge Zambia PLC, Dangote Cement Zambia Limited and Mpande Limestone to make undertakings within 90 days of receiving the directive that their respective employees should not engage in any anti-competitive behaviour and that the enterprises should not facilitate and/or participate in any anti-competitive conduct including the exchange of information,” the Board had stated.
Meanwhile, checks by SaharaReporters in Nigerian construction markets revealed that Dangote Cement sold for N3,500, while Lafarge sold for N3,400 – about double what Zambians paid for the same commodity at the time.