By Nana Musa

As part of this year’s Eid-el-Kabir festivities, the Dangote Cement Plc, Obajana, has taken significant steps to reinforce its partnerships with government authorities and host communities in Kogi.

The Plant Director, Nawabuddin Azad, said the company was scaling up its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts around its catchment areas to deepen these relationships.

Azad made this disclosure when he visited the Chairman of Lokoja Local Government Area of Kogi State, Abdullahi Adamu.

The Plant Director said the company has executed several social projects as stipulated in the mutually agreed Community Development Agreement (CDA), adding that the company was sustaining the tempo.

According to him, the company is desirous of deepening its collaboration with the Local and the State Government to enable it to sustain its job creation effort and infrastructural development in the State.

“Our strategy focuses on creating sustainable livelihoods, while addressing the unique needs of each host community,” Azad said.

He commended the chairman for his numerous interventions, and for ensuring that peace prevails in the company’s catchment areas.

He said the cement company has contributed enormously to creating social and economic balance for Kogi and Nigeria.

In his response, Adamu described the Dangote Cement Plc at Obajana as a national treasure that must be protected through collaborative efforts of all stakeholders, most importantly, the host communities.

He urged the host communities to be peaceful and law abiding.

Meanwhile, Azad also paid a courtesy visit to Apata and Obajana Plant Communities.

He thanked the traditional rulers for their sustained support to the company, saying the relationship is mutually beneficial.

In his response, the Olu of Apata, Oba Fredrick Balogun, commended the Plant Director for his foresightedness and being very supportive.

The Bajana of Obajana, Idowu Isenibi thanked Azad for his numerous supports, pledging that his community would continue to be the Ambassador of the Dangote Cement.

A statement from the company said several social programmes have been executed in the past few years.

Some of the projects include: construction of multimillion Naira hospital at Iwaa, women empowerment programmes, scholarship schemes, solar empowerment programme and poultry empowerment programme.

Other projects include provision of tricycles, road construction, water supply, electrification, construction of blocks of classrooms, empowerment of corporative societies and farmer empowerment programme.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Obajana plant is the largest cement factory in Sub-Saharan Africa, and it remains a cornerstone of Nigeria’s industrialisation.(NAN)

Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz