Olu Verheijen, special adviser on energy to President Bola Tinubu, says Nigeria attracted more than $8 billion investments in deepwater projects and gas final investment decisions (FIDs) within one year.
Verheijen spoke on Wednesday at the 2025 Africa CEO Forum in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
According to NAN, the presidential aide said Tinubu’s decisive actions made the achievement possible.
She said the investments focused on improved fiscal terms, streamlined contracting timelines, clearer local content rules, and power sector reforms that enabled gas-to-power commercial viability.
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Verheijen, therefore, urged industry leaders across the continent to take their cue from Nigeria.
The presidential aide urged them to ensure that Africa moves beyond appeals for support to becoming an investment destination by design, anchored in policy clarity, commercial logic, and strategic intent.
“Africa must partner smartly, not from dependency, but from aligned strategic interest,” she said.
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“Nigeria has been able to prove that this approach works. We moved from gridlock to greenlight, and investors responded.
“Nigeria’s attainment of an increase in indigenous equity in gas, from 69 per cent to 83 per cent, is not just a statistic but a seismic shift in ownership and control of Africa’s energy future.”
Verheijen said African investors, development finance institutions (DFIs), banks, pension funds, and sovereigns must maintain strategic focus.
She urged them to strive to fill the vacuum left by international oil companies (IOCs) in terms of funding and with fit-for-purpose instruments and risk-sharing structures.
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“Our sweet spot is onshore, shelf, and domestic gas. That’s where African players must dominate, because we understand the terrain, the risk, and the reward,” Verheijen said.
She also celebrated the feats of African private sector companies “like Seplat, Oando and Renaissance, who are no longer just “local players”.
