Speech At A Media Engagement Ahead Of The Official Visit Of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu To The United Kingdom.

London, Sunday 15 March 2026

It is a pleasure to engage with the global media community during His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s state visit to the United Kingdom, at the invitation of His Majesty King Charles III.

This visit is significant in many ways. It highlights the historic and strategic relationship between Nigeria and the United Kingdom, a relationship built on deep diplomatic, economic, cultural, and democratic ties.

For decades, our two countries have maintained a partnership that spans trade, education, security cooperation, cultural exchange, and shared democratic values.

President Tinubu’s visit provides an important opportunity to strengthen collaboration across critical areas, including trade and investment, security cooperation, climate action, education, and technological innovation. It also reflects Nigeria’s growing importance as a key democratic and economic partner in Africa and a responsible participant in global affairs.

Nigeria remains Africa’s largest democracy. Since 1999, our country has sustained more than two decades of uninterrupted democratic governance. During this period, democratic institutions — including the legislature, the judiciary, and the electoral system — have continued to evolve and strengthen.

Nigeria also maintains one of the most vibrant media environments on the African continent, with thousands of active media outlets and a strong civil society sector that contributes to public accountability and democratic participation. These institutions demonstrate that Nigeria’s democracy is resilient and continues to mature.

At the heart of President Tinubu’s administration is a clear commitment to ensuring that democracy delivers real and tangible benefits to the Nigerian people. Through the Renewed Hope Agenda, the government is implementing reforms to stabilise the economy, expand opportunity, strengthen social protection, and invest in the country’s long-term development.

Many of you will be very familiar with the macroeconomic reform foundation of the Renewed Hope Agenda, focused on addressing long-term structural challenges that have put public finances under severe pressure and discouraged domestic and foreign investment.

These have included an unsustainable petrol subsidy regime, distortions in the foreign exchange market, absence of a compelling framework for incentivizing deepwater oil and investment, and a dysfunctional bureaucracy that complicated life for exporters and importers.

Today, every one of these issues has either been addressed or is being addressed by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The removal of petrol subsidy and harmonization of multiple exchange rate regimes were among the earliest decisions the President took, in the interest of fiscal transparency, economic sustainability, and investment predictability.

In the oil and gas sector, a series of presidential executive orders since 2024 have introduced reforms and incentives that have made Nigeria Africa’s most attractive oil and gas investment destination for the second consecutive year (2024 and 2025), delivering over $8 billion already in Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) from companies like Shell and Total, with billions more on the horizon.

Each of these investment dollars represents jobs and technical skills for Nigerian talent, revitalised communities, a more robust foreign exchange market, and increased revenues for governments at all levels.

Later this month Nigeria will launch a historic Customs Single Window, a unified trade facilitation platform to drive efficiency in the country’s import and export processes. It will do this by connecting all our trade agencies, importers and exporters on a single digital platform that allows the seamless and speedy submission and processing of relevant documentation.

Another major milestone is Nigeria’s recent exit from the Financial Action Task Force’s grey list, following significant improvements in our regulatory frameworks to combat money laundering and illicit financial flows. This development strengthens Nigeria’s credibility within the global financial system and improves the ease of doing business with international partners.

Nigeria remains firmly committed to maintaining a transparent and rules-based environment for investment across all sectors of the economy, including the mining industry. Our ongoing reforms in the mining sector are designed to eliminate speculative licence holding, promote transparency, and ensure that only serious investors who comply with the law participate in the development of the country’s mineral resources.

While reforms of any kind often involve short-term adjustments that could be painful, we are already seeing encouraging signs of progress. Investor confidence is returning across key sectors of the economy. Inflation has halved since 2023, trade surplus is growing, and the Central Bank’s Purchasing Managers’ Index – a key indicator of the health of Nigeria’s manufacturing and service sectors – has now seen 15 consecutive months of expansion.

Nigeria’s external reserves have strengthened significantly, crossing the 50-billion-dollar mark as of February 2026, improving the country’s ability to stabilise its currency and meet international obligations. According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, 3.5 billion dollars of these reserves are now in gold holdings, as part of efforts to deepen economic diversification.

Across Nigeria, major infrastructure investments are underway to strengthen economic connectivity and national integration. Flagship projects include superhighways like the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway, which will become one of the largest coastal infrastructure corridors in Africa, and the Sokoto–Badagry Highway, designed to improve east-west economic connectivity.

There is also the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano Gas Pipeline, which when completed will be Nigeria’s largest gas pipeline network, significantly expanding gas supply to industries and power plants across the northern part of the country.

In the power sector, the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), and the new Grid Asset Management Company (GAMCO) are among the major pillars of an ongoing revamp and expansion of critical sector infrastructure.

Nigeria’s young population remains one of the country’s greatest assets. The administration has prioritised human capital development as a foundation for long-term prosperity.

For the first time in decades Nigeria now has a national student loan program, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which now benefits over a million higher education students, allowing them to pursue university education without the burden of out-of-pocket tuition payments.

Security remains a top priority of the administration. Nigeria continues to confront complex security challenges, including terrorism in the North-East, banditry in parts of the North-West, and criminal networks engaged in kidnapping and organised crime. Our security agencies have significantly strengthened coordination, intelligence sharing, and operational cooperation.

These efforts are supported by increased collaboration with international partners, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and other allies, in areas such as intelligence, training, and counter-terrorism technology.

Nigeria’s Navy, recognised by the 2026 Global Firepower Index as possessing Africa’s strongest naval fleet, is currently leading efforts to establish a Combined Maritime Task Force to secure the Gulf of Guinea – with the new multinational force scheduled to formally take off this year.

On the domestic front, the government of Nigeria has taken steps to strengthen community-based security initiatives and improve surveillance in vulnerable areas. These efforts are producing measurable progress in many communities where economic and social activities are gradually returning to normal. While challenges remain, the government remains fully committed to restoring lasting peace and stability across the country.

Nigeria is also proud of its long tradition of religious diversity and coexistence. Our constitution guarantees freedom of religion and belief, and Nigerians of different faiths live and work together peacefully across the country. Government policies remain secular, inclusive, and protective of the rights of all citizens. Nigeria’s diversity is not a weakness; it is one of our greatest strengths and a powerful foundation for national unity.

Nigeria also continues to play a leading role in regional and global affairs. As one of Africa’s most influential nations, Nigeria contributes actively to peacekeeping, regional diplomacy, and international cooperation. Our country remains committed to working with global partners to address shared challenges, including climate change, energy security, migration, and counter-terrorism.

Nigeria remains open and welcoming to responsible investors from around the world. Government policies continue to support investment through regulatory transparency, tax incentives, and full repatriation of profits.

We deeply value our long-standing partnership with the United Kingdom and look forward to strengthening collaboration in the years ahead.

Thank you very much for your attention.

Mohammed Idris, fnipr
Nigeria’s Hon. Minister of Information and National Orientation
London, United Kingdom
15 March 2026