President Bola Tinubu has been briefed on the African Export-Import Bank’s investment in the Kano-Maradi railway project as part of broader efforts to strengthen regional trade and industrialisation across West Africa.
The disclosure was made during a meeting between President Tinubu and a delegation of Afreximbank led by its President and Chairman of the Board, Dr. George Elombi, at the State House in Abuja.
Elombi said the bank is supporting key infrastructure projects in Nigeria, including the Kano-Maradi railway and the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, to improve connectivity and stimulate economic growth.
He also announced that Afreximbank has committed $2bn to revive Nigeria’s cotton and garment industry, describing the intervention as part of the bank’s strategy to promote value addition and industrial development across the continent.
According to him, Afreximbank has invested between $15bn and $20bn in Nigeria over the past five years in sectors such as trade, healthcare, agricultural processing and manufacturing.
The bank’s president also highlighted investments in the African Medical Centre of Excellence in Abuja, aimed at reducing medical tourism and strengthening healthcare delivery in Africa.
Speaking during the meeting, Tinubu urged Afreximbank to deepen its support for Africa’s industrialisation by mobilising investments that would expand manufacturing, create jobs and reduce the continent’s dependence on raw material exports.
The President said Nigeria’s economic reforms, including the removal of fuel subsidy and foreign exchange reforms, were designed to create a more competitive investment environment.
He also called on the bank to increase financing for agricultural value chains, particularly cocoa, palm oil and other export-oriented crops, while collaborating with the Bank of Agriculture to boost local production.
Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, said the Tinubu administration’s economic diversification agenda is positioning Nigeria for sustainable industrial growth through investments in infrastructure, manufacturing, agriculture, solid minerals and the digital economy.
(The Whistler)
