Bio, Elumelu Push Private Investment and Industrial Growth in West Africa

President Julius Maada Bio and business leader Tony O. Elumelu have urged governments, investors and financial institutions to work together to accelerate private-sector investment, industrialisation and job creation across West Africa.

The call was made during a high-level meeting in Lagos, Nigeria, held ahead of the inaugural West Africa Integration and Investment Summit. The gathering marked the first physical meeting of the WAIIS Private Sector Advisory Board and brought together business executives, investors and representatives of major financial institutions.

Focus on four investment sectors

Discussions centred on four priority areas: energy trade and industrialisation, strategic minerals, agribusiness and digital transformation.

Bio, who is Sierra Leone’s president and the immediate past chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, said West Africa’s economic potential needed to be converted into tangible outcomes. He pointed to a regional consumer market of more than 400 million people and said practical initiatives were needed to generate measurable benefits.

“But potential is not prosperity. Our task is to convert these advantages into productive enterprises, competitive industries, regional value chains, jobs and wealth,” Bio said.

He also called on the advisory board to identify investment-ready projects, engage potential financiers and help resolve challenges that could delay implementation.

“We are partners in execution; let us transform ideas into partnerships, partnerships into investments and investments into lasting prosperity for our continent,” the president said.

Elumelu calls for stronger regional cooperation

Elumelu, chairman of Heirs Holdings and co-chair of the summit with Bio, said African businesses should cooperate across national borders by combining capital, technical expertise and commercial experience.

He linked the approach to his advocacy for Africapitalism, which promotes African private-sector investment in strategic industries. Elumelu said West Africa had the resources and capacity required to achieve prosperity, while stressing that investment would depend on a stable operating environment.

“Governments must provide the policy certainty, regulatory efficiency and security required to give investors the confidence to commit capital for the long term,” he said.

Elumelu also indicated that he was ready to work with the Africa Finance Corporation, the African Export-Import Bank, United Bank for Africa and Ecobank to mobilise investment for priority projects.

“This is consistent with our aspirations to create jobs for our young people,” he said.

Regional integration and implementation

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu highlighted the importance of industrial expansion and the unrestricted movement of goods and services to meaningful regional economic integration.

Participants said closer cooperation in agriculture, mineral processing, energy infrastructure and technology could help reduce dependence on imports, support local manufacturing and strengthen West Africa’s position in international markets.

The meeting was attended by senior figures from organisations including Dangote Group, FA Limited, Petrolin Group, BUA Group, Oando PLC, Africa50, the Central Bank of West African States, Orango Investment Corporation, Africa Trading Minerals and Teyliom Group. Financial institutions represented included the Africa Finance Corporation and Afreximbank.

The West Africa Integration and Investment Summit is scheduled for 17 and 18 November 2026 at the Julius Maada Bio International Conference Centre in Lungi, Sierra Leone. The two-day event is expected to attract heads of state, senior government officials, international investors, financial institutions and business executives.

Attention will now focus on whether the commitments discussed in Lagos lead to secured investments, new businesses and employment opportunities. The source material does not identify specific projects, financing amounts or signed agreements resulting from the meeting.