Sales volumes at Dangote Cement Cameroon fell 14.1% in 2025, according to the company’s audited financial statements reviewed by Business in Cameroon. The subsidiary of the Nigerian conglomerate controlled by businessman Aliko Dangote sold 1.2 million tons of cement last year, down from 1.4 million tons in 2024.
The decline represents a drop of about 200,000 tons at the company’s Douala plant, which has an annual production capacity of 1.5 million tons.
Dangote Cement attributed the slowdown to uncertainties linked to Cameroon’s presidential election held in October 2025. The announcement of the official results triggered unrest in several cities across the country, disrupting economic activity.
Douala, the country’s economic capital and home to the Dangote Cement plant, was among the hardest-hit areas, according to official data.
The drop in sales in Cameroon also affected the group’s broader African performance. Dangote Cement said its pan-African operations recorded a 1.6% decline in volumes, falling to 11.0 million tons in 2025 from 11.1 million tons the previous year.
The company said the weaker performance reflected pre- and post-election uncertainties in Cameroon, Senegal, and South Africa, as well as liquidity constraints in Ethiopia linked to delays in adopting the national budget.
Optimism for 2026
The decline in sales in Cameroon also weighed on the group’s financial results. Although consolidated EBITDA increased in 2025, supported mainly by strong operations in Nigeria, the indicator fell across Dangote Cement’s pan-African operations.
Pan-African EBITDA declined 14.8% to 294.1 billion naira (about CFA120.5 billion), representing a margin of 20.2%. In 2024, EBITDA stood at 345.3 billion naira (about CFA141.4 billion) with a margin of 23.3%.
The company said the decline reflects lower volumes across several key markets, including Ethiopia, Senegal, Cameroon, Ghana, and South Africa.
Despite the weaker performance in 2025, Dangote Cement remains optimistic about its prospects in Cameroon.
The company expects demand for cement to rise as major infrastructure projects move forward. These include the construction of the Douala-Yaoundé highway, as well as road and bridge projects underway across the country.
Expansion plans in Cameroon
Dangote Cement has operated in Cameroon since 2015 through its 1.5-million-ton plant built along the Wouri River in Douala. The company’s entry into the market ended 48 years of monopoly by Cimenteries du Cameroun (Cimencam), the local subsidiary of LafargeHolcim Maroc Afrique.
Looking ahead, Dangote Cement plans to increase its production capacity in Cameroon and six other African countries.
On February 28, 2026, Aliko Dangote signed a $1 billion agreement in Lagos with Chinese engineering firm Sinoma Engineering to support the expansion program.
In Cameroon, two options are under consideration: expanding the capacity of the existing Douala plant or reviving a long-delayed plan to build a new plant of similar capacity in Nomayos, on the outskirts of Yaoundé. The project has been stalled for more than a decade.
Brice R. Mbodiam
