Billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote has alleged that Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), spent about $5 million on the secondary education of his four children in Switzerland.
In a paid newspaper advertisement published on Tuesday, Dangote claimed the sum covered tuition fees, living expenses, air travel, and general upkeep for Faisal Farouk, Farouk Jr., Ashraf Farouk, and Farhana Farouk over a six-year period. He stated that the children attended several elite institutions, including Montreux School, Aiglon College, Institut Le Rosey, and La Garenne International School.
Dangote provided a cost breakdown, estimating annual expenses of about $200,000 per child for tuition, airfare, and upkeep. This, he said, amounted to roughly $800,000 per year for the four children and about $4.8 million over six years, which he rounded up to $5 million.
He further referenced tertiary education costs, estimating about $125,000 per child annually over four years, bringing the total to $2 million. According to Dangote, Faisal Farouk’s Harvard MBA programme in 2025 alone reportedly cost $210,000, covering tuition and living expenses.
Raising concerns about accountability, Dangote questioned the source of the funds used, stressing that Nigerians deserve clarity on how a public officer could finance such expenses while, he noted, many parents in Ahmed’s home state of Sokoto struggle to pay school fees as low as ₦10,000 for their children.
