Economy
African development: ECA calls for innovative people centered model
The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), says Africa requires an innovative people-centred development model to integrate poverty and inequality reduction into national and regional development strategies. Antonio Pedro, the Acting Executive Secretary, ECA, said this at the 55th session of the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Monday. According to Pedro, Africa is at the centre of a global sustainability transition, underpinning its path toward recovery, ensuring structural transformation and economic diversification. He said the transition would enable the continent to build resilience, and achieve sustainable and inclusive growth, in line with Agendas 2030 and 2063.
“There is moderately good news as Africa’s growth is rebounding at 4.1 per cent, and inflation has reduced to 12 per cent so far. However, pundits argue that we need double-digit growth rates to achieve a breakthrough and promote a new cycle of sustainable growth and a reinvigorated business and innovation climate. This will require paying detailed attention to ensuring that strong macroeconomic fundamentals are in place to allow for structural transformation. We also need adequate financing and push for a reform of the global financial architecture to unlock long-term financing, green jobs, pro-poor policies, tax mechanisms and curbing illicit financial flows,” he said. The acting secretary said there was the need to de-risk investment on the continent for both domestic and foreign investors, adding that immense efforts were required to develop a credible pipeline of bankable projects.
Pedro said that with limited fiscal space, every dollar spent must generate maximum socioeconomic impacts and co-benefits beyond Gross Domestic Product (GDP) metrics and profit maximisation. He said it was for this reason that this year’s theme, “Fostering Recovery and Transformation in Africa to reduce Inequalities and Vulnerabilities,” was pertinent. According to Pedro, poverty and inequality are already significant in Africa before the recent global crises. These overlapping crises worsen and threaten to reverse two decades of hard-won progress. He said Africa was facing a future where the total population of poor and non-poor who faced the risk of falling into poverty was nearly 695 million. Pedro said that those hardest hits were the ones who recover the slowest, and getting back on track would require years of urgent action and coordination at the global, regional, and national levels.
The ECA boss said Africa needed to adopt measures to mitigate the economic and social vulnerability, reduce economic inequality, foster inclusive and resilient growth, and accelerate poverty reduction. “To strengthen social compacts, we need to improve the quality of multi-stakeholder dialogues and participation in policy and decision-making. We need a social state! We need to improve our understanding of the political economy of change and how to use behavioural incentives and nudges to achieve our strategic goals. We see the existential threat climate change continues to pose to countries, yet, the financing available to African countries to combat climate change and ensure a green recovery is insufficient and inadequate. But leveraging green finance to accelerate the possibility of a green recovery can be within reach,’’ e said.
Pedro underscored the need for Africa to leverage the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement (AfCFTA) to bridge the inequality and vulnerability gap while fostering recovery and transformation in Africa. “We must invest more in generating detailed growth diagnostic studies to determine our countries’ national value proposition and comparative advantages. We must also leverage skills gaps assessments to better align supply and demand between our education systems, societal and market needs. Employ trade decision support models to determine our best export destinations, and utilise GIS-enabled hotspot analysis of economic opportunities to understand better where our policy actions and investments will generate the greatest impact.” Pedro said an integrated, coherent, complete toolkit was needed to support Africa’s structural transformation and supportive ecosystem for transformational change. This must be inter-generational.
“We need to control the narrative on our trajectory to sustainable development. In doing all of this, we cannot overlook our financing challenges. We will need to accelerate the development of our domestic and regional financial markets to raise the required revenues for development. As Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, we recognise that your job is not easy and balancing competing needs will always be challenging. However, we have several transformational opportunities that with the right scale and speed, will give us a chance to bring the implementation of the SDGs and Agenda 2063 back on track,” Pedro said.
The Arab Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program and the Federal Republic of Nigeria formalized a partnership with the signing of the AATB Membership Agreement, officially welcoming Nigeria as the Program’s newest member country. The signing ceremony took place in Abuja on the sidelines of the 5th AATB Board of Governors Meeting, hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Membership Agreement was signed by Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, the CEO of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and AATB Program Secretary General, and H.E. Mr. Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Agreement will provide a strategic and operational framework to support Nigeria’s efforts in trade competitiveness, promote export diversification, strengthen priority value chains, and advance capacity-building efforts in line with national development priorities. Areas of collaboration will include trade promotion, agribusiness modernization, SME development, businessmen missions, trade facilitation, logistics efficiency, and digital trade readiness.
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, called for deeper trade collaboration between African and Arab nations, stressing the importance of value-added Agribusiness and industrial partnerships for regional growth. Speaking in Abuja at the Agribusiness Matchmaking Forum ahead of the AATB Board of Governors Meeting, the Minister said the shifting global economy makes it essential for African and Arab nations to rely more on regional cooperation, investment and shared markets.
He highlighted projections showing Arab-Africa trade could grow by more than US$37 billion in the next three years and urged partners to prioritize value addition rather than raw commodity exports. He noted that Nigeria’s growing industrial base and upcoming National Single Window reforms will support efficiency, investment and private-sector expansion.
“This is a moment to turn opportunity into action”, he said. “By working together, we can build stronger value chains, create jobs and support prosperity across our regions”, Edun emphasized. “As African and Arab nations embark on this journey of deeper trade collaboration, the potential for growth and development is vast. With a shared vision and commitment to value-added partnerships, we can unlock new opportunities, drive economic growth, and create a brighter future for our people.”
Speaking during the event, Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, Chief Executive Officer of ITFC and Secretary General of the AATB Program, stated: “We are pleased to welcome Nigeria to be part of the AATB Program. Nigeria stands as one of Africa’s most dynamic and resilient economies in Africa, with a rapidly expanding private sector and strong potential across agribusiness, energy, manufacturing, and digital industries. Through this Membership Agreement, we look forward to collaborating closely with Nigerian institutions to strengthen value chains, expand regional market access, enhance trade finance and investment opportunities, and support the country’s development priorities.”
The signing of this Agreement underscores AATB’s continued engagement with African countries and its evolving portfolio of programs supporting trade and investment. In recent years, AATB has worked on initiatives across agribusiness, textiles, logistics, digital trade, export readiness under the AfCFTA framework, and other regional initiatives such as the Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) Programme.
With Nigeria’s accession, the AATB Program extends it’s presence in the region and adds a key partner working toward advancing trade-led development and fostering inclusive economic growth.
Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), a key fiscal document that outlines Nigeria’s revenue expectations, macroeconomic assumptions, and spending priorities for the next three years. The approval followed Wednesday’s FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu made this known after the meeting.
The Minister said the Federal Government is projecting a total revenue inflow of N34.33 trillion in 2026, including N4.98 trillion expected from government-owned enterprises. Bagudu said that the projected revenue is N6.55 trillion lower than earlier estimates, adding that federal allocations are expected to drop by about N9.4 trillion, representing a 16% decline compared to the 2025 budget.
He said that statutory transfers are expected to amount to about N3 trillion within the same fiscal year. On macroeconomic assumptions, FEC adopted an oil production benchmark of 2.6 million barrels per day (mbpd) for 2026, although a more conservative 1.8 mbpd will be used for budgeting purposes. An oil price benchmark of $64 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,512 per dollar were also approved.
Bagudu said the exchange rate assumption reflects projections tied to economic and political developments ahead of the 2027 general elections. He said the exchange rate assumption took into account the fiscal outlook ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The minister said that all the parameters were based on macroeconomic analysis by the Budget Office and other relevant agencies. Bagudu said FEC also reviewed comments from cabinet members before approving the Medium-Term Fiscal Expenditure Ceiling (MFTEC), which sets expenditure limits. Earlier, the Senate approved the external borrowing plan of $21.5 billion presented by President Tinubu for consideration The loans, according to the Senate, were part of the MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2025 budget.
The spot rate on Nigerian Treasury bills has been increased by 146 basis points by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) following tight subscription levels at the main auction on Wednesday. The spot rate on Treasury bills with one-year maturity has now surpassed Nigeria’s 16.05% inflation by 145 basis points following a recent decision to keep the policy rate at 27%.
The Apex Bank came to the primary market with N700 billion Treasury bills offer size across standard tenors, including 91-day, 182-day and 364 day maturities. Details from the auction results showed that demand settled slightly above the total offers as investors began to seek higher returns on naira assets despite disinflation.
Total subscription came in at about N775 billion versus N700 billion offers floated at the main auction. The results showed rising appetite for duration as investors parked about 90% of their bids on Nigerian Treasury bills with 364 days maturity. The CBN opened N100 billion worth of 91 days bills for subscription, but the offer received underwhelming bids totalling N44.17 billion.
The CBN allotted N42.80 billion for the short-term instrument at the spot rate of 15.30%, the same as the previous auction. Total demand for 182 days Nigerian Treasury bills settled at N33.38 billion as against N150 billion that the authority pushed out for subscription. The CBN raised N30.36 billion from 182 days bills allotted to investors at the spot rate of 15.50%, the same as the previous auction.
Investors staked N697.29 billion on N450 billion in 364-day Treasury bills that was offered for subscription. The CBN raised N636.46 billion from the longest tenor at the spot rate of 17.50%, up from 16.04% at the previous auction.
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