Tinubu Charges West African Leaders to Prepare for Next Industrial Revolution

Tinubu Charges West African Leaders to Prepare for Next Industrial Revolution

JOEL OLADELE, Abuja 

President Bola Tinubu has emphasized the urgent need for West African leaders to prepare for the next industrial revolution, stressing that the continent cannot afford to be left behind as it was during previous industrial transformations.

Speaking at the West African Economic Summit (WAES) 2025 on Saturday, the President pointed out that Europe’s historical neglect of Africa during the industrial revolutions has resulted in significant economic disadvantages that the region must now overcome.

The Industrial Revolution, which began in Great Britain around 1760 and spread to continental Europe and the United States by 1840, marked a significant transition in the global economy.

The period, often divided into the First and Second Industrial Revolutions, followed the Second Agricultural Revolution and was characterized by a shift from hand production methods to machine-based manufacturing.

Lamenting the aftermath of Africa industrial failure in the past, Tinubu emphasized the need for regional integration and collaboration to unlock economic potential.

He urged leaders to rethink their approach to natural resources, advocating for a shift from merely being resource-rich to becoming value-chain smart.

“We must move from declarations to concrete deals. We must move from policy frameworks to practical implementation. We also recognize that Europe left Africa behind in the previous industrial revolutions. We cannot afford to miss the next one.

“Our rare minerals, perhaps the moral green technologies, yes, it is not enough to be resource rich. We must become value chain smart and invest in local processing and regional manufacturing.

“The era of one pit to the port must end. We must turn our mineral wealth into domestic economic value, jobs, technology, and manufacturing. The fundamental transformation will not come solely from the government but from unleashing our people’s entrepreneurial spirit,” Tinubu said

The President highlighted that inter-regional trade in West Africa remains alarmingly low, at under 10%. He attributed this to a failure of coordination rather than a lack of will.

“The global economy will not wait for West Africa to get its act together nor should we. Rather than competing in a solution or relying on external partners, we must together strengthen our regional value chains, invest in infrastructure, and coordinate our policies.

“Our region’s greatest asset is its youthful population. However, this demographic promise can quickly become a liability if not matched by investments in education, digital infrastructure, innovation, and productive enterprise.,” he noted.

The President therefore called for a unified approach to strengthen regional value chains, improve infrastructure, and coordinate policies that will enable the region to harness its youthful population effectively.

“The government must provide the right environment,  law, order, and market-friendly policies while the private sector drives the growth. Our task is to find new and effective ways to invest in our collective future, improve the business climate, and create opportunities for our youth and women.

“Let us emerge from this summit with actionable outcomes, a renewed commitment to ease of doing business, enhanced inter-regional trade, improved infrastructure connectivity, and innovative ideas that move our people from poverty to prosperity.

“Let us build a West African that is investible, competitive, and resilient, one that needs and lives with vision, responsibility, and unity. This is the new West African proposition. Let us make it real and bankable,” Tinubu charged.

Also in his speech, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, noted that one of the aims of the Summit is to reset the vision for the economic future of the West African region.

Tuggar emphasized the need to build on existing frameworks that facilitate trade and movement within the region.

“Our purpose today is to reset the vision for the economic future of the West African region. Now that is quite an ambitious target and let’s be honest, it is up to the creative talents, enterprise and ingenuity of our people to deliver that transformation. Governments and organizations are at their best when they realize the limits of their influence and power.

“So we’re here to build on that enabling environment. We’re not reinventing the wheel. As an economic community, West Africa enjoys freedom of movement and a framework  to facilitate trade, full electricity and integrate transport corridors,” Tuggar said.

The Minister highlighted the need for effective cooperation between supply and demand to create thriving markets.

“We still believe in free markets, not a free for all, but markets that thrive because of effective cooperation between supply and demand, regulated by accepted and acceptable parameters.

“Let us not forget that in 2024, West Africa exported goods valued at over 166 billion, yet only 8.6 percent of that trade remained within our borders. Imports follow the same pattern, heavily tilted toward partners outside the continent.

“Machinery and manufactured goods from China, India, the United States and the European Union dominate our import flows while we continue to export and process raw materials.

“This trajectory is untenable and the issue is not just capacity but orientation. We know what economists call the informal sector finds ways to deliver what the market wants, bypassing borders and regulations when they’re too slow and bureaucratic,” Tuggar said.