Kenyan President William Ruto has commended Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote for playing a key role in resolving Nigeria’s persistent fuel scarcity through the establishment of the massive Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
Speaking at the Africa We Build Summit in Nairobi on April 23, 2026, President Ruto highlighted how Nigeria, despite being a major crude oil producer for decades, had long suffered from chronic fuel queues and shortages.
He noted that the situation changed dramatically when Dangote built Africa’s largest refinery, providing a homegrown solution to the crisis.
“Nigeria has been an oil producer for years, yet when we went there, there were queues of people looking for fuel,” Ruto said.
“This persisted for years until an African stepped forward to change the narrative. That African is Aliko Dangote, who built the Dangote Refinery. The solution to Nigeria’s long-standing fuel challenge did not come from Europe or Asia it came from within Nigeria itself.”
Ruto described the refinery as a powerful example of “African problems being solved by Africans themselves,” emphasizing intra-African innovation and self-reliance in addressing energy security issues.
The comments come as the Dangote Refinery ramps up operations, helping stabilize domestic fuel supply in Nigeria while also exporting refined products to several African countries facing global supply disruptions, including those linked to tensions in the Middle East.
During the same event, Dangote offered to replicate the 650,000 barrels-per-day refinery model in East Africa (potentially in Tanzania’s Tanga port) if supported by regional leaders like Presidents Ruto and Museveni, to serve crude oil from Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan, and the DRC.
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