Dangote Flour Mills has reopened its plant in Kano, saving the jobs of 3,000 workers who depend on the firm for their sustenance.The plant was shut down by Tiger Branded Consumer Goods of South Africa following its acquisition of the flour mill.As part of its restructuring process for greater market share, the reopening ceremony and commissioning of new machinery at the plant location in Kano also witnessed the rewarding of distributors at various categories.Speaking at the commissioning of the plant in Kano at the weekend, president/chief executive, Dangote Group Ltd, Aliko Dangote, assured stakeholders that the mill is back for production and will not be shut down again."I would like to assure you that we are back for good and we will never close this mill again. It has always been my desire to increase our investments in Kano. We are also looking forward to venturing into farming in the state where we can create a lot of jobs, and I think this flour mill will helpus achieve this feat in Kano."Kano is very strategic because most of our products, be it flour, sugar, pasta, enjoy a lotof patronage and support. I want to announce that we have successfully re-engineered Dangote Flour Mill so as to meet the emerging challenges in the marketplace and also to meet the ever changing demands of our esteemed and loyal consumers."We decided to make this investment in November when Tiger Branded Consumer Goods decided to leave the country and we do not want over 3000 jobs to be lost. You can imagine these 3000 people going back into the job market in Nigeria. So we decided to seek ways to assist to ensure that these jobs are secured by injecting fresh cash of about N10 billion into the business."Our return to Kano is actually a sign of good things to come and it is our hope that, by this move, we will create thousands of employment in the state, and not just in flour but other products."Very soon we will start growing wheat in Kano. I want to assure our customers that we will continue to support you to make sure that we assist you with the necessary things needed to make your businesses a lot easier and more profitable."I am looking forward to you supporting the entire team to make sure the company surpasses its target of 900,000 metric tonnes of wheat yearly. I want to assure youthat with the new board we have, this company will definitely excel with or withoutmy presence", he added.Chairman, Dangote Flour Mills Plc, Ighodalo Asue noted that Kano remains one of the firm's biggest markets and the managementis happy to be reinvigorating the plant."We bought back Dangote Flour Mill from Tiger Branded and by this move, it means we have a stronger, better sophisticated andmore focused Dangote Flour Mills."Since the takeover, we have taken a lot steps to reposition the company through expansion to drive growth. We are also using this medium to restate our commitment to increasing our shareholdersvalue and our dear customers."Let me assure you that we will continue to invest in the state and other parts of the country and even beyond the country, because we believe in job and wealth creation. It is our hope that our return to Kano will create more job opportunities and impact positively on the economy of the state."He further commended Aliko Dangote for his investment in Dangote Flour Mills."A few months ago when Tiger Branded Company was going to leave the country, it appeared that the fate of the company was in jeopardy, but Aliko Dangote's decision to buy back the company has saved the jobs of about 3,000 employees and the shares ofover a million shareholders. More importantly, the multiplier effect of his investment in the country is immeasurable",he said.
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