Nigeria Pushes Strategic Autonomy, Local Processing at Berlin Global Dialogue

Nigeria has called for a new model of global economic engagement with Africa based on sovereign decision-making, strategic autonomy, local industrial development and increased investment in bankable infrastructure projects.

The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, made the call at the Berlin Global Dialogue 2026, where he advocated partnerships that respect African priorities and promote mutual benefits rather than dependency.

Speaking during a high-level panel on Foreign Policy by Other Means: Trade, Technology, and Geopolitical Power and a policy lab on infrastructure and investment, Enikanolaiye said Africa was determined to shape its own development while engaging constructively with the international community.

“Africa has come to this conversation with great assets, substantial opportunities and a determination to shape its own development based on partnership with the rest of the world,” he said.

The minister observed that international diplomacy was increasingly moving away from rigid political alliances towards pragmatic, commercially driven partnerships shaped by national interests.

He cited a recent policy lab organised in Abuja by a foreign embassy, with the participation of the President’s Adviser, as an example of the emerging approach to international cooperation.

On the relationship between foreign policy, business and strategic autonomy, Enikanolaiye traced the historical links between commerce and diplomacy, from the Royal Niger Company to multinational corporations operating in post-independence Africa.

He said the continent’s historical economic marginalisation underscored the need to mobilise domestic resources to finance development, stressing that foreign investment should complement rather than replace African capital.

Citing the public offer associated with industrialist Aliko Dangote, which he said attracted subscriptions from more than 52 countries, the minister emphasised the importance of building domestic investment capacity.

“Foreign capital can only complement but cannot replace the kind of resources that we need,” he said.

Enikanolaiye added that governments must create an enabling environment for private enterprise to thrive, pointing to Nigeria’s stabilising role in Liberia and Sierra Leone through the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG).

According to him, the regional intervention helped create conditions that enabled Nigerian businesses, including banks, to expand their operations across West Africa.

On growing competition among global powers, he reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to strategic autonomy, saying the country must retain the freedom to engage with different international blocs according to its national interests.

“It allows us a space of action regardless of ideology or political complexion of the various blocs to advance our own national interest, including those of Nigerian companies,” he said.

The minister also called for an end to the extractive model of economic engagement in which African countries export raw materials without developing local industries to process them.

He said Nigeria’s policy direction required investors in the mining sector to establish local processing facilities, supported by regulatory oversight to protect the environment and host communities.

“We learned from our experience in the Niger Delta. We are now doing things differently to give rights to local communities where minerals are found,” he said.

Nigeria Seeks Investment in Power, Transport, Digital Infrastructure

Addressing infrastructure financing, Enikanolaiye said Africa’s development ambitions depended on reliable electricity, efficient transport systems and expanded digital connectivity.

He described the infrastructure sectors as critical to increasing productivity, expanding economic opportunities and addressing the needs of the continent’s growing youthful population.

The minister also identified revenue generation through electricity metering as an investment opportunity, noting that improved metering could support the financial sustainability of power utilities and attract private capital.

He said African governments had undertaken legal and regulatory reforms, alongside macroeconomic stabilisation and deregulation, to improve the investment climate.

However, he stressed that attracting long-term capital required well-prepared projects, predictable regulations, transparent procurement processes and credible mechanisms for sharing investment risks.

Enikanolaiye identified the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), African Development Bank, ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) and the newly established African Credit Rating Agency in Mauritius as important institutions in expanding access to guarantees and blended finance.

He also called for reforms to the international credit rating system, arguing that Africa needed fairer assessments of its investment risks and economic prospects.

Welcoming the emergence of the African Credit Rating Agency, he said a more balanced assessment of African economies could help address barriers to financing development projects.

The minister further linked Africa’s ambitions in artificial intelligence to the availability of reliable electricity, warning that technological advancement would depend on adequate energy infrastructure.

Nigeria Backs African Trade Integration

On regional economic integration, Enikanolaiye cited Africa’s average economic growth of 4.3 per cent and the ambition to raise the rate to seven per cent.

He highlighted progress towards the proposed ECO single currency, Nigeria’s single-window trade system and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) as initiatives that could strengthen economic cooperation and facilitate cross-border commerce.

He said African countries needed to increase trade among themselves to build competitive industries and derive greater benefits from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The minister noted that intra-African trade remained around 16 per cent, underscoring the need to address barriers to commerce and strengthen regional production and payment systems.

“We need to trade more among ourselves to develop competitive advantages,” he said.

Enikanolaiye also identified investment in technical education, curriculum reform and skills development as essential to delivering Africa’s infrastructure ambitions.

He urged African countries to make better use of diaspora remittances, particularly amid declining official development assistance, while continuing reforms to improve the business environment.

He also pointed to China’s approach to infrastructure cooperation, which he described as non-conditional, as part of the range of international partnership models available to African countries.

The minister concluded by calling for the mobilisation of long-term capital to support development, reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to fiscal discipline, transparency, democracy and the rule of law.

Nigeria, Lesotho Explore Deeper Diplomatic and Economic Ties

On the sidelines of the dialogue, Nigeria’s delegation held engagements at Nigeria House in Berlin on behalf of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The delegation was led by Enikanolaiye and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu.

In a bilateral meeting, Enikanolaiye and Nigeria’s Ambassador to Germany, Senator Ita Enang, met Lesotho’s Foreign Minister, Limpho Justice Tau, to discuss stronger bilateral cooperation.

The discussions included the possibility of establishing a physical diplomatic presence for Lesotho in Abuja to deepen engagement between the two countries.

Tau commended Nigeria’s historical contribution to African liberation struggles and invited Nigerian industrialists, including the Dangote Group, to explore investment opportunities in Lesotho.

The meeting is expected to support further cooperation through the African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD).