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Nigeria absent as Africa agrees on nuclear energy as best alternative source of power, Putin woos Africa to join G20 in Sept.

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Nigeria, the giant of Africa, was conspicuously absent as African leaders gathered in St Petersburg, Russia, to discuss ways Nuclear power can help solve the continent’s perennial energy crisis despite global out cry against Russia on its unprovoked war against Ukraine and subsequent sanction against it. Meanwhile Russian President Vladimir Putin told the president of the African Union during a meeting shown on state television that Russia was counting on the African Union obtaining full membership of the Group of 20 nations, comprising most of the world’s largest economies, in September. However, representatives of other countries present, unanimously agreed that the continent has a better option in nuclear energy against the prevalent hydro power source, to light up Africa again. They also agreed that the continent needs regional co-operation to pursue aggressive reformation of their different power sectors with nuclear energy. The positions were taken at a session: “Nuclear technologies for the development of African continent” at the ongoing Russia-Africa Economic Forum in St Petersburg Russia. 

Panelists to the session who reached the conclusion, included Alexey Likhachev, Director General, State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM; Ibrahim Uwizeye, Minister of Hydraulics, Energy and Mining of the Republic of Burundi; Doto Mashaka Biteko, Minister of Minerals of  Tanzania; Zhemu Soda, Minister of Energy and Power Development of Zimbabwe; Amged El-Wakeel, Chairman of the Board, Nuclear Power Plants Authority of Egypt; Fidele Ndahayo, Chief Executive Officer, Rwanda Atomic Energy Board; and Princess Mthombeni, Founder, Africa4Nuclear; Nuclear Communication and Technology Specialist of South Africa. Asked why Nigeria was not invited to such important discussion, considering the country’s precarious energy situation, organisers of the event said the relevant agencies did not just respond to the call. The leaders took turns to present their level of power efficiency and x-rayed how nuclear energy can engender wealth creation, energy efficiency, technology sovereignty and advanced medicine. 

According to El Wakeel, Nuclear energy has helped Egypt in many ways including clean water, health, Agriculture and electricity even as the country still needs to further advance its economy, using  the technology. For Fidele Ndahayo, Rwanda has almost achieved universal access in electricity, but still needs nuclear energy to sustain their achievement.  “We are almost 70 percent in electricity penetration. However, we are reliant on hydro power and with what we know, hydro is almost unreliable. We need nuclear energy to sustain our efforts for a longer time. Besides, small modular technologies are  making waves across the world and we want to be there from the inception. We are not going to wait for other countries to develop with it while we play catch up later. We want to be there from development stage. It has potentials to develop our agriculture, health, education and technology development sectors”. What excites Biteko of Tanzania is that the country is rich in Uranium which is the conductor of the nuclear energy and the technology will help the country add to its Gross Domestic Product GDP. Uranian will foster the increase in our GDP as we want to use technology to add at least 10 percent to GDP. We are inviting everyone who wishes to be part of our growth.

” Secondly, we are thinking of how to use uranium to link our agricultural development, health, education and move our teeming youths out of the labour market and totally improve wealth and general livelihood of the people of Tanzania”, he said. For Ibrahim Uwizeye, “My country, Burundi suffers from huge deficit of electricity. For a country of more than 20 million people, less than 20 percent electricity penetration is not encouraging. Hydro power is not being able to produce sufficient megawatts of the power we need. So, we welcome Rosatom to come and invest in our country in this area. Without improving the power generation, we are not going to be able to attract industrialists in our country. Besides, like my colleague from Rwanda has said we also need to use it to attack lack of development and wealth creation in our country. But before that, we need to improve generation and that is where we need Rosatom’s nuclear power energy prowess.

Responding, Likhachev said the issue of intergovernmental cooperation resonates with Russia and the country is willing to help Africa achieve energy sufficiency. He also promised that wherever Russia enters into agreement in Africa, it will also develop programmes that will lead the country to technology sovereignty. Technically, we give every country the opportunity to have high percentage of the participation in what we are doing with them, just to give them technology sovereignty” he added. But, it was Princess Mthombeni who advised African leaders to shun wrong narratives against nuclear energy and consider it the nerve centre of every development of every countey of the world. 

“In any industrialised economy, there is always different opinions on development techniques and measures. But one clear point to know is that energy remains a focal point and the nucleus  of development for countries of the world. Russia is offering nuclear power which is  fundamental to development in Africa. But, unfortunately, there is a lot of resistance. African leaders should ask why? Perhaps many European countries highly involved in hydro power business, using it to drive their agenda of manipulating governments in Africa are weaving up campaigns against what nuclear power can offer. This has caused apathy among mainstream media in Africa towards accepting nuclear power. So we need an alternative media to counter the narratives and consistently create virile awareness and campaign, if only to help Africa plug into what can unlock wealth creation in their economies”, she advised

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Economy

Nigeria champions African-Arab trade to boost agribusiness, industrial growth

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December 5, 2025

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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.

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FEC approves 2026–2028 MTEF, projects N34.33trn revenue 

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December 4, 2025

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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.

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Economy

CBN hikes interest on treasury Bills above inflation rate

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December 4, 2025

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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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