President Bola Tinubu has called on the leadership of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to intensify efforts to mobilise and deploy Africa’s vast human, financial and natural resources for the continent’s collective economic advancement.
The President made the appeal on Tuesday while receiving a delegation from Afreximbank, led by its President and Chairman, Dr George Elombi, at the State House in Abuja.
Tinubu said Africa’s quest for industrialisation must move beyond theoretical discussions to practical actions capable of driving economic growth, expanding trade, creating jobs and improving living standards across the continent.
“The conscience and the future of Africa depend on what you and your team can do and will do for Africa as a whole, and the time has come for us to start doing things together as Africans,” the President said.
“We have what it takes to build this continent. Do we continue to exploit and export raw materials without value addition? That answer is no.”
The President noted that Africa possesses abundant natural resources, including critical minerals such as lithium, and urged Afreximbank to provide investment guarantees that would support local manufacturing and value addition.
“We have solid mineral deposits such as lithium and others that can be used, and you, as the financial partner, should be able to come with investment guarantees for the production and value addition in batteries and other manufacturing ecosystems,” he added.
Tinubu also defended his administration’s economic reforms, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market, describing them as necessary measures to tackle corruption and ensure the country’s economic survival.
Addressing the issue of farmer-herder clashes, the President said his administration had transformed the long-standing challenge into an economic opportunity through the creation of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development.
“I created the Livestock Ministry to create economic opportunities for Africans. The cotton, ginnery and garment industries are job creators. If we partner well and incorporate these ideas and do less talking and really put our heads into developmental programmes, we can turn it around,” Tinubu said.
The President further urged Afreximbank to collaborate with the Bank of Agriculture and increase investments in agricultural products such as cocoa, palm kernel and palm oil, stressing the importance of strengthening agricultural value chains.
Speaking during the meeting, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, described the administration’s Eight-Point Renewed Hope Agenda as a transformative blueprint designed to reposition Nigeria for sustainable economic growth and industrial expansion.
According to Enoh, President Tinubu’s focus on sectors such as solid minerals, oil and gas, manufacturing, agriculture, the digital economy and value-added exports is laying the foundation for a resilient economy that is less dependent on crude oil revenues.
In his remarks, Dr Elombi said the delegation visited the President to appreciate his support, which contributed to his emergence as President of Afreximbank, and to brief him on the bank’s activities and investment portfolios in Nigeria.
The meeting underscored renewed efforts to strengthen partnerships aimed at accelerating industrialisation and economic development across Africa.
