Abdul Samad Rabiu

Abdul Samad Rabiu was born and raised in Kano in the north-western part of Nigeria and is a Hausa man. He visited Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, US and later returned to Nigeria 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.

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.

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.

Aliyu Rabiu was married to Hannatu Musawa. He has only four children. They are Khadija Cookie Rabiu, Isyaku Khalifa Rabiu, Junaid Rabiu, and Rania Rabiu. He has several siblings including Nafiu Rabiu and Rabiu Rabiu, the chairman of IRS Airlines.

Abdul Samad Rabiu uses the BUA Foundation for his philanthropic activities. These include the construction of 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. In 2021, Abdul Samad set up the Abdul Samad Rabiu Initiative for Africa (ASR Africa) which he also chairs and through which he commits $100 million annually to strategic social investments in health, education, and infrastructure across Nigeria and Africa.