The SIAT Group (Société d’Investissement pour l’Agriculture Tropicale NV), majority shareholder of Presco Plc, has celebrated its agricultural legacy, leadership and people at the SIAT Forward event.
The event, themed “Legacy, Leadership & the Future,” brought together SIAT’s founding family, retired directors, board members, executives, financial partners and other stakeholders.
The gathering provided an opportunity to reflect on the Group’s history, recognise those who contributed to its growth and celebrate its continuing legacy.
Incorporated under Belgian law in 1991 under the leadership of Pierre Vandebeeck, SIAT began its African journey with the acquisition of Presco in Nigeria that year.
The Group subsequently expanded its African footprint, including through the acquisition of Ghana Oil Palm Development Company (GOPDC) in 1995.
SIAT operates integrated agricultural businesses across Africa, spanning plantation development, cultivation, processing and downstream activities.
Through its businesses in Nigeria and Ghana, the Group employs more than 17,000 people and supports thousands of smallholder farmers and rural communities.
At the event, Mr Rasheed Sarumi, Group Chief Executive Officer of Saroafrica International Ltd and Chairman of Presco Plc, described the gathering as a milestone.
“We are gathered this evening not simply to mark an occasion, but to celebrate a milestone,” Sarumi said.
He said the Group had grown across borders and generations through the vision of its founding family and the dedication of those who carried the vision forward.
“Today is about saying thank you to those who built it, stayed, served, and to those who continue to carry it forward,” Sarumi said.
Speaking on behalf of the founding family, Marie Vandebeeck said SIAT’s legacy was primarily about building people.
“When I think of the legacy of SIAT Group, I don’t first think of hectares and tons of palm oil. I think of people,” she said.
She said building successful companies in Africa required more than capital and ambition, adding that belief in the future had become part of SIAT’s DNA.
“This philosophy became the DNA of SIAT, and nowhere is it more visible than in Presco,” Vandebeeck said.
She said Presco’s development was the result of decades of persistence, investment and the contribution of exceptional Nigerian organisations.
“There was certainly risk and uncertainty; that’s part of the entrepreneurial journey. But there was also a fundamental conviction that it was possible,” she said.
Vandebeeck said she was proud of the talented people who joined SIAT, remained with the company, developed professionally and assumed greater responsibilities.
Also speaking, Mr Adewale Arikawe, Group Chief Executive Officer of SIAT Group, said the current leadership had a responsibility to build on the foundations laid by previous generations.
“Our responsibility as a team is to take SIAT to the next level — to build something bigger, bolder and more impactful,” Arikawe said.
He said SIAT remained committed to being an integrated agriculture business that sustainably grows, processes and markets agricultural resources.
According to him, the objective is to create value for the Group’s people and shareholders while strengthening its agricultural operations.
“The Group is growing, and with that growth comes a greater responsibility to our people, our shareholders and all our stakeholders,” he said.
Arikawe said the leadership would continue building on what had been established to make SIAT bigger and stronger.
The event was attended by Chief Atedo Peterside, former Board member of Presco Plc; Reji George, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Presco Plc; and Felix Nwabuko, former Group Chief Executive Officer of SIAT NV.
Nwabuko is also the Institutional Adviser of Presco Plc.
