By Udeme Ekwere

The Chairman, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has said that the Nigerian market still holds a lot of investment opportunities for both foreign and local investors.

According to him, despite the various political challenges affecting activities in some parts of Asia and the Middle East, the Nigerian market remains investors’ delight.

Dangote was speaking at the just concluded 2010 West African Investors Conference organised by Stanbic IBTC Plc.

A statement by the organisers on Thursday, quoted him as saying that a lot of companies on the exchange had strong fundamentals and would in future bring about good returns for investors.

“For instance, our cement company – the Dangote Cement Group has the desire to achieve a 26million metric tonnes annual production capacity in Nigeria, and once this is achieved, it will result in higher production, thus bringing more profit for investors,” he said.

Dangote noted that the company was also expanding its presence on the continent by acquiring and developing several cement producing assets where it sees opportunities.

In her submission, the Director-General, Securities and Exchange Commission, Ms. Arunma Oteh, reassured both individual and institutional investors interested in the Nigerian economy of the safety of their investments in spite of the political upheavals sweeping through parts of Africa and the Middle East.

According to her, the Nigerian market has embarked on broad-based reforms of its financial services sector with the aim of deepening and broadening the capital and money markets in line with global best practices.

She said, “SEC has embarked upon a transformation agenda, such that our capital markets are able to play the role that it should play in ensuring that the full potential of our economy is realised. The elements of that agenda relate to trust, building investor confidence. Building investor confidence means ensuring that sharp practices are not associated with this market, at the level of investors, capital market operators and at our own level as regulators.

“The disclosure regime is also being enhanced, it is transparent and there is more accountability and that we abide by international standards, the highest standards in terms of corporate governance.”

The statement said that the Chairman, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr. Atedo Peterside, in his submission, noted that despite the positive performances of some capital markets, doubts over a double dip recession still pervaded.

He said, “With the spectres of recoveries experienced in numerous markets of the world in 2010, investment managers have been cautiously enhancing their exposures to the different markets, with the frontier markets getting increasing attention.

“The good news, however, is that our economy is currently one of the fastest growing in the world and we are no longer threatened by a collapse of our banking sector. I leave you to imagine what growth rates our economy could therefore attain when we finally fix our infrastructure as President Goodluck Jonathan’s government is trying to do.”

Source: Punch