WASHINGTON, DC—On Thursday, July 6, the U.S. Nigeria Council for Food Security, Trade, and Investment (USNC) hosted a webinar on the theme of “U.S. and Nigerian bilateral economic priorities under the new administration in Abuja.” We were honored to hose a panel consisting of Wale Edun (President Tinubu’s Senior Adviser on Monetary Policy), Wale Tinubu (CEO of Oando Plc), and David Greene (Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja).
After introductory remarks by former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria and USNC Chairman Terence McCulley, the three speakers shared their reactions to President Tinubu’s early reforms and their priorities as he forms his government.CDA Greene highlighted U.S. investor optimism about the pace of reforms from President Tinubu’s government, detailing some of the positive reactions he has heard from American firms that have grown wary of policy uncertainty in Nigeria. While he cautioned that many investors are still employing a wait-and-see approach before reentering the Nigerian market, CDA Greene applauded the difficult but necessary decisions that Presi-dent Tinubu has made over his first few weeks in office, as well as the positive economic effects that are already being felt.
Mr. Wale Tinubu, representing the Nigerian business community, echoed CDA Greene’s assessment of the private sector’s positive view of the changes thus far. He also highlighted the opportunities that investors in Nigeria should seize given the improving business climate in the country. He touched on promising opportunities in renewables (particularly in lithium mining and processing), food and energy security (given global shocks in these areas stemming from Russia’s war in Ukraine), and the ICT sector (noting the arrival of several subsea cables that will revolutionize data speeds in Nigeria). Mr. Tinubu expressed his hope that international investors will see the possibilities in these domains and take advantage of the policy reforms implemented by President Tinubu to capitalize on them.
As one of the seniormost officials in charge of monetary policy, Mr. Edun gave attendees a detailed view on how the government will manage the market exchange rate while still ensuring adequate foreign reserves. He also addressed concerns about lingering inflation in Nigeria, expressing President Tinubu’s openness to cash transfers for vulnerable citizens, and projected the long-term effect of the scrapping of fuel subsidies.
USNC Senior Advisor Aubrey Hruby then moderated a question-and-answer session with the 75 attendees that included Dr. Uzoma Emenike, Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States, Mr. Mobolaji Ogundero, the Embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission, and Ian Sheridan, the Economic Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, among many other lead-ers from a wide range of sectors in both countries.
The USNC put on this event to respond to keen interest demonstrated by members from both the United States and Nigeria in understanding the reforms and priorities of the new Tinubu administration. We were particularly pleased to welcome many USNC members, including Founding Member John Coumantaros, Chairman of Flour Mills of Nigeria and Honorary Co-Chair of the USNC, Herbert Wigwe, Managing Director of Access Bank, Kolawole Owodunni, Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, and USNC Board Member Franklin Amoo, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Baylis Emerging Markets.
If you would like to learn more about the USNC and our future programming, please email USNC Director of Operations Jonathan Dörnhofer at jdornhofer@usnigeriacouncil.org.