The retailer complained that some manufacturers had increased their depot prices to a new high following the general hike in prices of things.

The cost of cement has jumped as much as 30% as fresh increases in prices and associated products were implemented recently by distributors across the country.

Nigeria is one of the largest producers of cement on the continent, but the price of cement continues to rise, especially this year over the high inflation that impacted the building materials market.

In Kubwa, Bwari area of Federal Capital Territory, a 50 kilograms bag of Dangote cement has surged to between N8,600 and N9,600, while BUA sells between N8500 and N9500.

“Dangote is N9600 while BUA goes for N9500 per bag”, a seller at Kubwa Phase 4 told SaharaReporters on Friday.

The retailer complained that some manufacturers had increased their depot prices to a new high following the general hike in prices of things.

A market survey conducted by SaharaReporters in Ibadan, Oyo State shows that cement is N9000.

In Sokoto, Dangote cement is sold for N9,200 while BUA goes for N8,650.

Meanwhile in Ilorin, BUA sells for N8,700 while Dangote goes for N9000.

The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, had on Thursday revealed that he planned to meet with manufacturers of cement and other building materials in the country, in a bid to stem the skyrocketing prices nationwide.

The move, he said, is aimed at better understanding the challenges in the sector, sharpening measures to mitigate the rising cost of building materials in the country and finding sustainable ways to address them.

Dangiwa spoke during a courtesy call by a delegation of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA).

The visitors were in his Abuja office to discuss the progress of the collaboration between the FMBN and the labour centres, especially as it concerns the National Affordable Housing Delivery Programme for Nigerian Workers (NAHDEP), which he initiated during his time as managing director of the FMBN.

A statement by Dangiwa’s Special Adviser on Media, Mark Chieshe, said the minister queried the recurring disproportionate increase in the price of cement in particular, especially considering that cement producers in the country source virtually all their raw materials locally.

“It is disheartening to see how much Nigerians have to pay for essential building commodities like cement, with the prices rising almost on a daily basis. I don’t understand the reason for this increase, and it is not acceptable.

“I am going to be meeting with these manufacturers soon, so that they can explain to Nigerians their reasons for such incessant hikes. I know that the cement producers source their raw materials in Nigeria.

“The limestone, clay, silica sand, gypsum, iron ore, and the rest. These minerals abound in Nigeria and these manufacturers get them here, so there is no justification to try and blame it all on the rise of dollar,” he argued.

He assured the delegation of the commitment of the President Bola Tinubu administration to provide decent and affordable shelter and liveable communities to low- and medium-income earners, as well as the vulnerable in society.