Victor EzejaNigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, has called on West African leaders to invest in harnessing the youthful population and natural resource endowments to achieve economic transformation and industrialization in the region.
Tinubu made the call while delivering his opening address at the inaugural West Africa Economic Summit (WAES) in Abuja.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe Nigerian president, who is the Chairman of ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, warned that the region’s demographic strength could become a liability if the leaders fail to make vital investments in education, digital infrastructure, innovation, and productive enterprise.
According to a statement by Tinubu’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, he stressed the need for regional cooperation, citing Nigeria’s investments in skills development, digital connectivity, and youth empowerment.
“No one country can do this alone. Our prosperity depends on regional supply chains, energy networks, and data frameworks. We must design them together—or they will collapse separately,” Tinubu stated.
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While noting that intra-regional trade was still below 10 per cent in West Africa, the Nigerian leader called for urgent efforts to remove trade barriers across the subregion, noting with concern that there is a need for improved collaboration in the subregion given the ongoing race for global economic relevance.
He averred that to achieve a significant economic transformation, West Africa must invest in infrastructure for local processing of raw materials and manufacturing, adding that the era of mere export of raw materials must end.
“Our rare minerals power tomorrow’s green technologies, yet being resource—rich is not enough; we must also become value-chain smart and invest in local processing and regional manufacturing.
“The era of ‘pit to port’ must end. We must turn our mineral wealth into domestic economic value—jobs, technology, and manufacturing,” Tinubu stated.
He pointed out that achieving a significant transformation requires synergy between the government and the private sector. According to him, “Governments must provide the right environment—law, order, and market-friendly policies—while the private sector drives growth.”
He tasked West African leaders to create an enabling environment for business growth and opportunities for youth and women.
“Let us emerge from this summit with actionable outcomes: a renewed commitment to ease of doing business, enhanced intra-regional trade, improved infrastructure connectivity, and innovative ideas that move our people from poverty to prosperity,” he added.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
