Dangote Cement Plc, a leading cement manufacturer, has signed a five-year Community Development Agreement (CDA) with its Ibese plant host communities.
Dangote Cement, Ibese Plant Director, Mr Azad Nawabuddin, made this known in a statement signed by Mr Francis Awowole-Browne, Media and Communication Relations Personnel, Dangote Industries Limited on Thursday in Lagos.
Nawabuddin said the decision to sign the agreement was a demonstration of the company’s commitment to human capital and infrastructural development of its host communities.
He added that the move was to underpin the fact that the company was irrevocably committed to the wellbeing of the residents in all the communities.
He said that the agreement signalled a new dawn for both the company and the host communities in the execution of the laid out social investment projects under the company’s Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) activities.
Nawabuddin said the company signed the first CDA in 2013 that marked the beginning of concrete infrastructural and social support in employment, education, health, and training among others to improve the standard of living in host communities.
He said the new CDA is an improvement as it was fashioned to surpass previous performance through positive impact on the various stakeholder groups, especially the vulnerable in our communities.
He added that the document stated clearly the consultative framework for engagements, grievance management and obligations of both the plant and the host communities for mutual growth and development.
“In putting this together, we applied all the lessons from the implementation of the former and thoroughly engaged with the different stakeholder groups across the 17 host communities, with the guidance of the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.
“We gather as key stakeholders in fulfillment of the provisions of section 116 of the Minerals and Mining Act 2007, and 193 of the Minerals and Mining Regulations 2011 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“This occasion is a demonstration of our commitment to the development and overall well-being of our host communities and their people, as a responsible corporate entity.
“It is clearly a path to define relationships, commitments, obligations and expectations with potential to address immediate concerns and future social issues that may arise, once all parties are committed to its full implementation,” he said.
The Dangote Cement Plant Director, affirming the company’s commitment to fulfilling all its obligations, charged the host communities to keep their end of the bargain to foster all round development.
The traditional leader of the Aga-Olowo, Olu of Aga-Olowo, Oba Kayode Kusoro, expressed his community’s appreciation to the management of Dangote Cement for its warm reception and commitment to CSR for the host communities.
In commending the company’s openness and transparency in the all-inclusive agreement signing process, he expressed hope that the company would keep faith with the letters of the agreement.
Also, the traditional leader of Imasayi, Olu of Imasayi, Oba Lukmon Kuoye, said that the signing of the new agreement was a clear departure from the past exercises as all representatives of the host communities and stakeholders were involved in the review and signing of the fresh agreement.
He stated that what the communities owed Dangote Cement was a continuous collaboration to ensure that the company operates in an environment devoid of crisis which he promised the royal fathers would work towards.
Remarking, the Aboro of Iboroland (traditional leader of Iboroland), Oba Daniel Salako, expressed his satisfaction with the fresh agreement which he considered to be better and more inclusive that the previous ones.
“This CDA is good for us all.
“Though the fresh agreement is limited to the existing seventeen host communities and cannot cover the entire Yewaland for now, but it is subject to future amendments that will conceive legacy projects for the benefits of the people of Yewaland,” he said.
Reports state that with the signing of the fresh agreement, each of the host communities will from 2022-2026 be entitled to specific projects that will add value to the lives and livelihood of the people.