Dangote Group Chairman Alhaji Aliko Dangote has blamed Nigeria’s high taxes and regulatory burden for the higher cost of locally produced cement.
In a Business Insider Africa report, Dangote emphasized how tax policies inflate domestic prices.
Cement exported from Nigeria is found to often sell for less than what Nigerians pay at home.
Dangote explained that the price gap exists because cement exports are exempt from multiple taxes and levies levied in Nigeria.
He pointed out that when examining their invoices, exported cement is cheaper than that sold in the country, since the savings from not paying income tax, education and health taxes, VAT and withholdings at source significantly reduce production costs.
These exemptions, he said, allow Nigerian cement to compete effectively with international producers from countries such as Türkiye, Russia and China.
“When you look at my invoice, the cement I export is cheaper than what I sell in the country, because that’s how exports work.
“In exports, I am saving a lot of money, I do not pay 30% income tax, I do not pay 2% for education, I do not pay 1% for health, I do not pay 7.5% VAT and I do not pay 10% withholding at source,” he said.
Dangote emphasized that the consequence of this system is that domestic consumers end up bearing the brunt of structural inefficiencies.
He added that local manufacturing alone cannot completely solve the high prices for Nigerians.
Cement prices in Nigeria range between 10,200 and 10,500 naira depending on location.