Nigeria’s largest cement producer Dangote Cement said on Thursday it had signed construction contracts worth US$228m with China’s Sinoma International Group to build cement plants in Senegal and Zambia.

The contracts for two 3,000-tonne per day cement plants mark the revival of the Nigerian firm’s expansion plans outside Africa’s most populous country following the global economic slowdown.

"We have concluded this deal with Sinoma in order to drive forward our pan-Africa expansion strategy at a time when the global economy seems to be emerging from recession," Aliko Dangote, President and CEO of the Dangote Group said in a statement.

"We are in a strong financial position and we are putting our money where our mouth is", he added.

Dangote Cement has projects and operations in Nigeria, Benin, Ghana, Senegal, Zambia and South Africa, with a capacity of 13Mt.

The group’s total commitment to new production capacity in Africa is US$1.63bn.

Partnerships between African and Chinese companies have become more and more common as Beijing looks to secure natural resources for the Asian giant’s growing economy.