President and Chief Executive of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has maintained that local businesses hold the key to developing their countries.

He said local entities bring about the real transformation over foreign investors.

Speaking during a “Fireside Discussion” at the Afreximbank Annual Meetings in Abuja, Nigeria, Dangote stressed that genuine development must come from within the continent.

“If local businesses don’t believe in their country—with all the information and exposure that they can turn things around—how can you convince foreign investors that things are better in your country?” he asked pointedly.

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man according to Forbes Magazine, insisted that partnerships and regional alliances are essential to mobilising capital and driving growth across indigenous enterprises.

He called for an urgent shift in focus toward empowering homegrown entrepreneurs.

“They are the ones who can bring about the needed development and transformation—not foreign investors,” he declared.

“If America’s President can say ‘America First’, then Africa must do the same.”

Aliko Dangote said the continent must begin a deliberate “Africa First” campaign, leveraging its vast resources and economic potential for the benefit of Africans.

But he did not shy away from highlighting the challenges.

He described the business climate in many African countries as hostile to growth, citing poor regulatory environments, inconsistent government policies, and reversals in national priorities whenever political power changes hands.

“These policy inconsistencies are killing businesses across Africa,” he lamented. “We must stop undoing progress every time there’s a new administration.”

Despite the difficulties, Aliko Dangote remains confident that African governments can raise the funds they need for infrastructure and development without waiting on foreign aid—if they empower the right players at home.

“The time is now to back our own,” he concluded. “Africa’s future depends on Africans.”