Tinubu has called for coordinated infrastructure, trade and industrial reforms to unlock West Africa’s full economic potential.
President Bola Tinubu has advocated for greater economic integration in West Africa, insisting that the region’s businesses cannot reach their full potential if markets remain fragmented.
Nigeria’s President, while lamenting that West Africa’s intra-regional trade remains a challenge at 10%, noted that this figure can no longer be ignored.
Speaking at the West Africa Economic Summit, Tinubu said, “Intra regional trade remains at 10%, a challenge you can no longer ignore. The low trade is not due to a failure of will, but a failure of coordination.”
The President noted that West Africa is one of the last great frontiers of economic growth, but added that opportunity alone does not guarantee transformation.
He said: “Opportunities, not just wishful thinking, we must earn it through vision integration, policy coherence, collaboration, and capital alignment.”
The Nigerian President called for collective action, investment in infrastructure, and coordinated policies to drive growth, stating that: “We must together strengthen our regional value chains, invest in infrastructure and coordinate our policies.”
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