Tinubu Urges Afreximbank to Drive Africa’s Industrialisation, Value Addition
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to intensify efforts to mobilise Africa’s human, financial and natural resources to accelerate the continent’s industrialisation and economic transformation.
The President made the call on Tuesday while receiving a delegation from Afreximbank, led by its President and Chairman of the Board, Dr. George Elombi, at the State House in Abuja.
Tinubu said Africa must move beyond discussions on development to practical actions that promote industrial growth, expand intra-African trade, create jobs, add value to raw materials and improve the living standards of its people.
He noted that his administration’s economic reforms, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of foreign exchange rates, were necessary measures to tackle corruption and stabilise Nigeria’s economy.
“The conscience and the future of Africa depend on what you and your team can do for Africa as a whole, and the time has come for us to start doing things together as Africans,” the President said.
He urged the bank to provide investment guarantees that would encourage value addition in Africa’s solid minerals sector, particularly in lithium processing, battery production and other manufacturing value chains, rather than continuing the export of raw materials.
President Tinubu also highlighted the creation of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development as part of efforts to transform the longstanding farmer-herder conflict into economic opportunities through livestock development and agribusiness.
He further called on Afreximbank to collaborate with the Bank of Agriculture to boost investments in cocoa, palm kernel, palm oil and other agricultural value chains capable of generating employment and increasing exports.
Speaking during the meeting, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, said the Tinubu administration’s Eight-Point Renewed Hope Agenda is driving economic diversification through investments in solid minerals, manufacturing, agriculture, oil and gas, the digital economy and value-added exports.
In his remarks, Afreximbank President, Dr. George Elombi, thanked President Tinubu for supporting his emergence as the bank’s president and briefed him on the institution’s operations in Nigeria.
Elombi disclosed that Afreximbank has invested between $15 billion and $20 billion in Nigeria over the past five years across trade, agricultural processing, healthcare and value-chain development.
He also revealed that the bank has committed $2 billion to support Nigeria’s cotton and garment industry, while also financing strategic infrastructure projects, including the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Kano-Maradi Railway.
The Afreximbank president further invited Tinubu to visit the African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE) in Abuja, describing it as part of the bank’s efforts to reduce medical tourism and strengthen healthcare delivery across Africa.
