Nigeria Advocates Strategic Autonomy, Infrastructure Investment at Berlin Global Dialogue 2026
Nigeria has called for a reformed global engagement with Africa anchored on sovereignty, strategic autonomy, domestic resource mobilisation and investment in bankable infrastructure projects.
The Honourable Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, made the call while speaking at the Berlin Global Dialogue 2026 during a high-level panel titled “Foreign Policy by Other Means: Trade, Technology, and Geopolitical Power” and a Policy Lab on Infrastructure and Investment.
The Minister said Africa’s new model of international engagement should be built on respect for national sovereignty, commitment to African priorities, mutual respect and shared prosperity.
He reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the doctrine of strategic autonomy, stressing that the country must retain the freedom to pursue its national interests regardless of the ideological positions or political orientations of global power blocs.
“It allows us a space of action regardless of ideology or political complexion of the various blocs to advance our own national interest, including those of Nigerian companies,” Enikanolaiye said.
He also called for an end to extractive economic arrangements that leave African countries exporting raw materials without maximising their domestic value, advocating beneficiation and greater local processing of mineral resources.
According to the Minister, Africa must prioritise infrastructure development by advancing bankable projects and building the technical capacity required to implement, operate and sustain them.
Enikanolaiye noted that Africa’s average gross domestic product growth rate stood at 4.3 per cent, while the continent aspired to achieve 7 per cent growth.
He stressed the need to reform the international credit rating system, arguing for more effective financing arrangements to support Africa’s development ambitions. He also welcomed the establishment of the African Credit Rating Agency as part of efforts to strengthen the continent’s financial architecture.
The Minister further called for the mobilisation of long-term capital to finance Africa’s development priorities, particularly infrastructure, industrialisation and economic transformation.
He concluded by reaffirming Nigeria’s commitment to fiscal discipline, transparency, democracy and the rule of law, emphasising the importance of these principles in building investor confidence and strengthening the country’s international partnerships.
Nigeria Advocates Strategic Autonomy, Infrastructure Investment at Berlin Global Dialogue 2026