Dangote Cement’s N144.8bn dividend delights shareholders [MUST READ]

Shareholders of Dangote Cement yesterday were full of praise for the board, management and staff of the company after hearing they had been handed a dividend pay-out of N144.8 billion, which translated to N8.50 kobo per share, as against the N8 per share that was paid in the corresponding period of 2015.

Speaking at the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) held in Lagos, the president, Amiable Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Festus Akano, said the shareholders were pleased with Aliko Dangote and his team. Akano said that for the company to still pay a robust dividend despite the recession in the economy, which also affected their operations, showed the doggedness and the fighting entrepreneurial spirit of its management.

A statement from the Corporate Communication department of the Dangote Group quoted Akano as saying, “We are very happy and pleased with this result. 2016 was very tough with the recession and fluctuation in the foreign exchange market, which the Chairman also said affected their operations, but despite all these challenges, the company was still able to pay us a very good dividend, better than last year, and even gave us hope of better returns on our investments in the years to come. This is very commendable and it is only a company like Dangote Cement that can achieve this laudable feat.”

The Chairman of the company, Aliko Dangote, while presenting the reports to the shareholders, said the company’s strategy in every country of operations was to be the leader on costs, quality and service. He said the company has maintained a tradition of building large, modern, highly efficient plants that combine the latest equipment from Europe, China and beyond to enable it make higher quality cement at lower costs, thereby giving it strong competitive advantages.