West Africa’s largest manufacturing conglomerate Dangote Group, has contracted global business software solutions provider SAP in a multi-million Euro three-year deal that provides the conglomerate a world-class business suite enhancing the group’s IT infrastructure and providing transparency in its finance.

SAP said – without disclosing the exact value of the deal – that its Business Suite offering upgrades Dangote from a manual-based system to a more integrated and automated system providing key management insight across the group with corresponding transparency into its financial accounts.

Dangote now has a single integrated system that provides a data of all business systems across its various subsidiaries.

Mike Okwechime, SAP West Africa account executive for large enterprises, said Dangote is the “first company in Nigeria to have an agreement that spans across other African countries, like SA, Senegal, and Ghana.”

According to a press release by the software provider, its Nigerian client officially went live on the SAP Business Suite on the 1st of August, 2012.

SAP which plans to earn at least $1 billion over the next five years from its Africa operations, said in a statement that the agreement is “one of the most significant SAP deals in Africa and it is expected to be phased over a three-year period”.

Africa’s richest man and owner of Dangote Group Alhaji Aliko Dangote, earlier announced plans to double cement output and position Nigeria has the largest cement producer in the world. His conglomerate running on SAP which is used by major consultants like Accenture and KPMG, will definitely increase the groups speed and efficiency.

According to South African IT publication itweb, SAP co-CEO Bill McDermott, said he wants the African business to grow in triple digits, adding that the US-based software vendor has Africa’s fastest growing economies in its bulls-eye.

Dangote Group is one of the largest and most diversified business conglomerates in Africa with interests in cement, sugar, salt, pasta, beverages and real estate. The Lagos-based multibillion-naira manufacturing facility has a $3 billion annual turnover and a $10.9 billion market capitalization.

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