Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Pays N260 m to Resettle 3 Communities in Sokoto

The Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN), Sokoto state, has disclosed that it had paid N260 million as compensation to three communities that were relocated from the company’s quarry site, to Sabongida Alu community, to enable it carry out its excavation of limestone.

The Managing Director of CCNN, Mr. Alf Karlsen, made the disclosure recently, while handing over facilities built for the three communities at Sabongida Alu community in Wamakko local government area of the state.

Karlsen, who was represented by the Executive Director of Finance of the CCNN, Alhaji Aminu Ibrahim, said the CCNN paid the compensation and resettled the three communities, to enable it carry out the Quarry Expansion project which started in 2012 and was completed recently.

He stated that CCNN compensated 186 families with 200 plots of land to build their houses while facilities such as borehole, clinic, primary school, Islamiyya, mosque and transformer were provided for them.

“As you are aware, the CCNN relocated three communities to Sabongida Alu community to enable it carry out its Quarry Expansion Project. In fact, we paid the 186 families compensation and provided them with 200 plots of land to build their houses. We also constructed facilities like clinic, primary school, bore-hole, among others to enable their children acquire education,” he explained.

Karlsen said the move became necessary in order for the CCNN to remain in the market and competitive. He announced that the plant expansion programme was currently ongoing, saying the project, when completed, the CCNN would have additional cement production capacity of 1.2 million tonnes.

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“We believe that with the completion of the Plant Expansion Programme, CCNN will have additional cement production capacity of 1.2 million tonnes of cement. Revenue and profitability will increase and the company will be able to do more for the host communities,” he said.

The CCNN boss commended the role of the local government, traditional leaders and the communities for their understanding.

In a remark, the Caretaker Chairman of Wamakko local government area, Alhaji Ahmad Kalambaina, commended the company for paying compensation and building infrastructure for the resettled communities.

“I am indeed aware that it is difficult for people to leave their ancestral lands for another community because of an expansion project embarked by the company. But I am glad that the process of resettlement of the three communities was done peacefully without violence. And I commend CCNN for building a school and other facilities for the host community,” he stated.

He called on the management of the company to provide scholarship to qualified candidates in the host community to enable them acquire tertiary education.

Also speaking, the District Head of Kalambaina, Alhaji Abubakar Ahmadu, lauded the company for supporting host communities and pleaded with the management to create a scholarship scheme for the host communities.