President Tinubu to Lead Africa’s Economic Transformation Talks in Kenya

• Advancing Nigeria’s economic reform agenda also on the card

The presidency announced yesterday that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s participation in the 2026 France‑Africa Summit in Nairobi is intended to push forward Nigeria’s economic reform agenda.

The statement added that the president will use the summit to reinforce Africa’s collective drive for sustainable growth, strategic economic partnerships and investment‑led development across the continent.

Presidential spokesperson Daniel Bwala, who briefed reporters on the sidelines of the Nairobi summit, said the conference comes at a time when African nations are undertaking critical reforms to create a more attractive investment climate and reposition the continent for lasting economic prosperity.

Bwala noted that Tinubu views the summit as highly strategic because six of the seven thematic areas scheduled for discussion on Tuesday closely match the core pillars of the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda currently being implemented in Nigeria.

He identified the key focus areas as international financial restructuring, artificial intelligence, agriculture, the blue economy and agricultural transformation, emphasizing that these reflect reforms already pursued under Tinubu’s leadership.

Bwala stated, “For us as a country and, of course, the leading country in Africa in many respects, the president deems it that this is a strategic meeting that is going to focus on seven thematic areas fortunately for us, six of the seven thematic areas happen to fall in line with the president’s renewed hope policy programmes, which we have started implementing right from day one.

 “Take, for example, when they talk about the international financial restructuring, we have seen the financial structuring, which has taken place in Nigeria, which has given confidence on Nigeria.”

The presidential media aide also highlighted Nigeria’s expanding use of artificial intelligence and digital technology, stressing that the country’s youthful population offers huge opportunities for innovation‑driven growth.

Regarding agriculture, Bwala said Nigeria possesses about 30 million hectares of arable land, describing the sector as a major component of the summit’s agenda and a critical area for investment and economic diversification.

He explained that the broader aim of the summit is to encourage African countries to harness their vast resources and build prosperous economies independent of excessive foreign dependence.

He said, “These are areas that they intend to focus on and the whole concept of this summit is to create this sense that Africa by itself can create the economy that they deserve, rather than this dependency from the rest of the world.”

On the opportunities the summit presents for Nigeria and the wider continent, Bwala described Nigeria as an investment‑friendly destination richly endowed with natural and human resources.

He added, “The president of Nigeria, who is a leading figure in Africa, is happy to lead in this endeavour. He is going to participate in three plenaries tomorrow. And these are areas that affect most of what we are doing in Nigeria.”

Concerning the president’s expected presentation, Bwala said Tinubu will showcase Nigeria’s ongoing reforms and tangible successes in finance, agriculture and the blue economy as models for other African nations.

He stated, “Like I told you, the key areas, for example, in financial restructuring, you know what we have done with unification of foreign exchange, which has given confidence to our Naira. So Nigeria is not only participating but also showing the example of what we have done which the rest of Africa can also emulate.

“In the area of agriculture, if you look at what we are doing in Nigeria and the opportunity that our arable fruitful land mast creates for investment and the president has actually initiated those reforms in agriculture in Nigeria, in other words, ‘I am doing something to tell you I believe in it, I am seeing the result and I am asking you to come and participate.’”

Bwala said the president’s address will focus on creating mutually beneficial investment opportunities that can deliver sustainable returns while accelerating economic growth across Africa.

He said, “Not just as bringing investment to Nigeria or Africa but participating in an investment that you have return on investment.

“In the blue economy, you see what we are doing in Africa and in Nigeria, in particular, most of these thematic areas happen to fall in line with what the president is going to talk about.”

The presidential aide also noted that Tinubu’s later participation in the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Rwanda, will further demonstrate Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening strategic economic partnerships throughout the continent.

He said, “The president even intends to move to as far as Kigali to also continue this conversation with the African CEOs, here it is quiet strategic, it is important and most of the thematic areas already fall in line with what we are doing in Nigeria.”