CEO Today Africa Awards 2024 - NIGERIA - - 9 - at the merger through the prism of strengths of the two entities independently and in unison to attain economies of scale for a wider competitive advantage. At the time of the merger, Obu plant situated in the south-south had a capacity of 6mmtpa and CCNN located in the Northwest of Nigeria in Sokoto was a 2mmtpa production facility. The Nigerian cement demand around the same time was around 28mmtpa owing to the increasing population growth rate put at 2.5% per year and coupled with a high urbanization rate along with infrastructural and housing deficits in the country, which meant the market was undersupplied by the key players, thus presenting a big opportunity for us. By consolidating the businesses, the company’s production capacity increased to 8mmtpa in 2020, which repositioned our market offerings. In terms of challenges, we were not insulated since every Can you share your journey to becoming the Managing Director and CEO of BUA Cement Plc? My over 30-year career has been primarily in the cement industry, starting as a trainee in a humble beginning and traversing through the ranks to become the Executive Director Technical of the now-defunct Cement Company of Northern Nigeria, under the Scancem Group and later moved on to Cement Projects with the acquisition of CCNN by BUA Group. I served as the Managing Director of Obu Cement Company in Edo, and later CCNN. In 2019, I was appointed the MD of the newly listed BUA Cement Plc, which was established from the merger of these two companies, and I’m still in the role to this day. Looking back, I would say that my career journey has been characterized by a great deal of commitment, hard work and perseverance. What have been the key challenges and opportunities you’ve faced during the merger of the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria and Obu Cement, and how did you navigate this transformative process? Mergers always present opportunities and challenges and the merger between the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria and Obu Cement was no different. We looked YUSUF HALIRU BINJI Managing Director and CEO of BUA Cement Plc LEADERSHIP EXCELLENCE IN MANUFACTURING “My career journey has been characterized by a great deal of commitment, hard work and perseverance.”
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