President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that Nigeria is on course to attract nearly $20 billion in foreign direct investment in 2026, citing sweeping economic reforms, improved transparency, and the removal of longstanding regulatory bottlenecks as evidence of renewed investor confidence in Africa’s largest economy.

Speaking at the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Tinubu used the high-level gathering of African leaders and business executives to push for greater economic self-reliance across the continent, arguing that Africa must stop exporting raw materials while importing finished goods at significantly higher costs.

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The Nigerian leader said his administration had focused on stabilising the macroeconomic environment and simplifying investment procedures to attract capital inflows into key sectors of the economy. According to him, Nigeria’s reforms are already yielding results, with investor confidence gradually rebounding after years of economic uncertainty.

Tinubu stressed that Africa must begin adding value to its natural resources locally rather than exporting them in raw form. Using Nigeria’s vast mineral deposits as an example, he argued that countries on the continent should build industries around their resources instead of depending on foreign processing and manufacturing.

He also highlighted the role of the private sector in driving industrial growth, pointing to the Dangote Group refinery project as an example of successful collaboration between government and business. Tinubu said government support, including policy incentives and access to crude supply, helped position the refinery as a major supplier of refined petroleum products within and beyond Nigeria.

Addressing Nigeria’s controversial crude-for-naira arrangement with domestic refiners, the president defended the policy as a practical solution to foreign exchange pressures and banking complications associated with international trade settlements. He argued that supplying crude oil in local currency would reduce unnecessary dependence on foreign exchange transactions while strengthening the naira.

Tinubu also criticised international credit rating agencies for what he described as the persistent undervaluation of African economies. He called for greater transparency and stronger financial institutions across the continent, insisting that African countries must improve confidence in their domestic markets while challenging external narratives that discourage investment.

On taxation, the president said Nigeria was implementing reforms aimed at simplifying tax compliance and broadening participation. He referenced reforms pioneered in Lagos State, saying the goal was to create a system that ordinary citizens and businesses could easily understand and access digitally without excessive bureaucracy.

Agriculture and infrastructure also featured prominently in Tinubu’s remarks. He disclosed that Nigeria was expanding mechanised farming zones, improving storage and logistics systems for farmers, and investing in strategic transport corridors such as the Sokoto-Badagry highway to strengthen regional trade and food distribution networks.

Tinubu further highlighted ongoing investments in digital infrastructure, revealing that more than 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic cable had already been deployed across Nigeria to support connectivity, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and access to digital services. He urged African nations to deepen regional collaboration under the African Continental Free Trade Area, warning that the continent could not achieve sustainable growth if countries continued operating in isolation.