ACF Celebrates 25th Anniversary, Honours Dangote, Danjuma and Other Icons

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has honoured Africa’s leading industrialist, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, GCON, with the Arewa Lifetime Achievement Award during its 25th anniversary celebration held in Kaduna.

Also decorated with the prestigious award was Lt. General T.Y. Danjuma (Rtd), GCON. The Forum further presented posthumous honours to Alhaji Abdulganiyu F. AbdulRazaq, SAN, CFR; Senator Joseph Sarwuan Tarka, CFR; and Malam Aminu Kano in recognition of their remarkable contributions to Nigeria’s socio-political and economic development.

Chairman of the event and former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Wazirin Adamawa, applauded both past and present leaders of the ACF for maintaining the organisation’s vision of promoting unity and progress across Northern Nigeria. He urged the Forum to sustain its traditional focus on education, agriculture, and industrialization, describing them as the pillars for sustainable national growth. Atiku further challenged Northern leaders to reassess their development priorities in line with modern realities.

Speaking to journalists after receiving his award, Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, expressed deep appreciation to the ACF for the recognition. He urged Northern state governments to embrace private-sector–driven governance models rather than wasteful administrative practices.

“State governments should be run like private businesses, not with convoys of 30 or more cars just to attend events. They need to focus on attracting investors,” he said.

Dangote lamented that despite the North’s abundant natural and mineral resources, the region still trails behind in key development indicators. He called on Northern governors to prioritise job creation as a strategic solution to insecurity.

He reaffirmed the commitment of the Dangote Group to human capital development and to supporting initiatives that uplift communities across Nigeria.