President Bola Tinubu projects that Nigeria will attract close to $20 billion in foreign direct investments (FDI) in 2026 due to transparency, efficiency and openness.
Tinubu spoke on Thursday during the Africa CEO Forum ongoing in Kigali, Rwanda.
“This year alone, I can beat my chest that Nigeria is attracting close to $20 billion in foreign direct investment,” he said.
The president said he has put in place incentives necessary to attract investments into Nigeria and removed bottlenecks discouraging investors.
Tinubu’s projection comes two months after he approved a production tax credit to fast-track Shell’s $20 billion final investment decision (FID) in deepwater project.
Also, in November 2025, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) announced that the government approved oil field development plans (FIDs) worth about $20 billion between January and October last year.
Speaking further, Tinubu advised African nations to put their money where their mouth is and collaborate with each other for effective utilisation of the continent’s resources.
“Luckily, we have an African trade agreement that should not be left on the drawing board, but should be activated properly (for) regional collaboration and effective utilisation of our resources,” he said.
“Not walking in silos, but in collaboration with one another, using what we have. To me, I believe in ‘Africa First’, because I have started ‘Nigeria First’.
“Today, we don’t want scavengers, we don’t want extractors, we want people to add value. If you are an investor, we will encourage you to add value to what we have as a nation.”
Tinubu also suggested that African countries develop an exchange trading platform that will enable the 54 countries on the continent to trade their resources among themselves.
“Look around the entire continent, 54 countries. There’s none of us without a particular commodity available. Why not start an exchange commodity platform, where we can trade with one another?” the president said.
Speaking on Nigeria’s survival amid the Middle East conflict, Tinubu said if Dangote refinery had not been established, the country would not have survived in peace due to its over 200 million population.
