Economy
Gombe Partners UK on industrial development, climate change mitigation
The British government has assured Gombe State of partnership and support in areas of climate change mitigation, industrial development and tracking delivery in the implementation of its 10-Year development plan. The British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing gave this indication when she hosted Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya at her official residence in Abuja. The two leaders discussed variety of topics, including governance, investment, peace and security, education and environment among others. The British envoy particularly noted that Gombe State is relatively secure and peaceful, commending the Governor for his visionary leadership and ensuring excellent inter-communal relations with Muslims and Christians working positively together in his state.
“I feel very impressed with His Excellency’s vision and his commitment to delivering for his people and I think this is the area where UK and Gombe State Government will collaborate”. The British High Commissioner also commended Governor Inuwa for aligning his 10-Year development plan with the sustainable development goals, and assured that the UK government will assist his efforts in tracking delivery and monitoring of progress through sharing of experience and other mechanisms of support. On the Muhammadu Buhari industrial park being set up by Governor Inuwa in Dadinkowa, Mrs Liang said: “the establishment of an industrial park linked directly to hydro electricity to take care of agricultural processing on local crops is a laudable and positive step. We hope to hear more about it so that we can connect some British investors to take advantage of it.
” On the issue of climate change, I think you got very interesting initiative. So we are going to connect His Excellency’s team with our relevant departments dealing with different sources of climate finance”. Mrs Laing indicated the willingness of her country to take part in the upcoming Gombe State Investment Summit. I understand there’s plan for an investment summit in Gombe in May, so I think that will be the next stage where we’ll encourage some representation from our department of international trade to get there and start looking at particular areas around the industrial park and the climate change, while on the delivery module we can start in earnest to share our ideas”. Earlier, Governor Inuwa Yahaya informed his host that Gombe has developed its 10-Year Development Plan, christened Development Agenda for Gombe, DEVAGOM along with a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework (2021-2030) which sets the path to achieve rapid physical, social, and economic growth in the state in line with the Sustainable Development Goals. The document identifies five development pillars upon which DEVAGOM revolves; a strategic linkage of socio-economic and administrative anchorage that is also built on the model of the UN’s SDGs as a global trend.
“The pillars are those of Economic Development, Infrastructure Development, Social Development, Sustainable Development and Governance, Administrative and Institutional Development pillars. Each of the pillars has a wide range of underlying activities that border on the greater good of the people as government performs its duties within some basic institutional framework detailing the policy thrust, policy target and policy objectives and overall betterment of the people”. He therefore requested for the UK Government’s support in the effective implementation of the plan and tracking progress towards achieving the set goals. Gombe state is currently setting up a Coordinating Research & Economic Intelligence Unit (CR/EIU) with the mandate to track our performance and progress towards achieving the goals of the DEVAGOM which will serve as guide for decision making by the Government, Stakeholders, Policy Makers, and the Public. We are therefore requesting the support of Her Majesty’s Government in building the data capacity for the unit to enable this tracking and as well as to strengthen technology driven Governance”.
The Governor also solicited for support and partnership with the UK to catalyze the efforts of his administration to manage the impact of climate change and towards coming up with climate mitigation strategy for Gombe State with a focus on community adaptation, infrastructure, low-cost climate appropriate technologies and regenerative agriculture. He said, ” In Gombe State, we have a home-grown and community driven initiative that we call Gombe Goes Green ( 3G) which targets the planting of at least 1 million trees per annum to address deforestation and check the advancement of sahara desert while mitigating climate change. Gombe is also battling with devastating impact of land degradation with about 210 active gullies, though we have tackled some through NEWMAP and intend to do more under ACreSAL. All these require more intervention through partnership with the UK government “. Governor Inuwa also intimated the High Commissioner on the 1000 hectare Muhammadu Buhari industrial Park and the need to green the park as well as other industrial clusters in the state, even as he notified her of the forthcoming Gombe State Investment Summit, coming up in May this year. The Governor was accompanied on the visit by the Commissioner of Finance and Economic Development, Muhammad Gambo Magaji and Special Adviser on Budget Planning and Development Partners Coordination, Dr. Ishiyaku Mohammed
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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