Abdul Samad Isyaku RabiuCON is a Nigerian businessman. His late father, Khalifah Isyaku Rabiu, was one of Nigeria's foremost industrialists in the 1970s and 1980s. Abdul Samad is the founder and chairman of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate concentrating on manufacturing, infrastructure and agriculture and producing a revenue in excess of $2.5 billion. He is also the chairman of the Nigerian Bank of Industry. In July 7, 2020, Forbes estimated Abdul Samad's wealth at $3.2 billion, putting him 716th in the global billionaire's club.
Early life
Abdul Samad Rabiu was born in Kano in the north-western part of Nigeria, where he obtained his early education. He next attended Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, and returned to Nigeria at the age of 24 to oversee the family business. This was when his father, Isyaku Rabiu, was being detained by the administration of General Muhammadu Buhari for allegedly not paying rice import duties.
Business life
Abdul Samad Rabiu established BUA International Limited in 1988 for the sole purpose of commodity trading. The company imported rice, edible oil, flour, and iron and steel. In 1990, the government, which owned Delta Steel Company, contracted with BUA to supply its raw materials in exchange for finished products. This provided a much-needed windfall for the young company. BUA expanded further into steel, producing billets, importing iron ore, and constructing multiple rolling mills in Nigeria. A few years later, BUA acquired Nigerian Oil Mills Limited, the largest edible oil processing company in Nigeria. In 2005 BUA started two flour-milling plants, in Lagos and in Kano. By 2008, BUA had broken an eight-year monopoly in the Nigerian sugar industry by commissioning the second-largest sugar refinery in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2009 the company went on to acquire a controlling stake in a publicly-listed Cement Company in Northern Nigeria and began to construct a $900 million cement plant in Edo State, completing it in early 2015.
Subsidiaries
1. BUA SUGAR: BUA Sugar Refinery Limited was incorporated on April 13, 2005, as a private limited liability company. The company's primary business is the refining of imported and locally sourced raw sugar. The Refinery was conceived as an ultra-modern, automated plant with state of the art equipment. It has an installed capacity of 2,000 MT of sugar a day. The technology deployed is unique and from Brazil, widely known as having the best technology in sugar production and refinery. The refinery is structured to generate its own power during the process of converting molasses to sugar. Nevertheless, provision has also been made for gas supply from a gas company to fire its turbines. The refinery is 100% Nigerian owned and 100% equity financed. 2. BUA OILS: BUA Oil Mills Limited Lagos is situated at No. 8 Akilo Road, Ikeja Lagos. The predecessor company, Golden Oil Company which was bought by BUA Oil Mills has been in existence for almost 20 years. The company has two refinery plants and matching fractionation plants with a combined installed capacity of 700TPD. The older refinery was supplied by Desmet of Belgium and has an installed capacity of 200TPD, while the new refinery, which was commissioned by BUA Oil Mills, was supplied by Alfa Laval with an installed capacity of 500TPD. 3. BUA PORTS & TERMINALS: BUA Ports and Terminals Limited, a subsidiary of BUA Group was incorporated on 28 March 2006. The Company is the concessionaire for the Port Harcourt Terminal ‘B’ of the Nigeria Ports Authority, NPA. This was after a highly competitive bidding process under the Public Enterprise Act No. 28 of 1999. 4. BUA CEMENT: BUA Group possesses a strong capacity in cement manufacturing with 3 major subsidiaries and plants in Northern and Southern Nigeria as well as a 2 million metric tonnes per annum floating terminal serving niche markets. The Group also holds a stake in Damnaz Cement Company Ltd which is the Majority Shareholder in Cement Company of Northern Nigeria. The Group's plants have the capacity to Provides various grades of cement as required in the local Nigeria markets and meet the highest standard of cement manufacturing. 5. BUA ESTATES: To meet the growing demands for real estate in Nigeria, BUA Group's real estate portfolio includes various residential, commercial and mixed-use developments in major Nigerian cities.
Philanthropy
Abdul Samad Rabiu uses the BUA Foundation for his philanthropic activities. These include the construction of a 7,000-square-meter paediatric ward at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital and the construction of the Centre for Islamic Studies at Bayero University Kano amongst several others.
Personal life
Abdul Samad is married with children, the popularly known of his children is Isyaku Rabiu, others are Junaid Rabiu, Rukkayah Rania Rabiu and Khadijah Rabiu. He has 42 siblings including Nafiu Rabiu and Rabiu Rabiu, the chairman of IRS Airlines.
