From Romanus Uzor
The legislative efforts of Senator Peter Onyekachi Nwebonyi received a significant boost on Friday as President Bola Tinubu declared firm support for local value addition to Nigeria’s and West Africa’s raw materials at the ongoing West Africa Economic Summit in Abuja.
President Tinubu, who is also Chairman of ECOWAS, made a resounding call for regional self-sufficiency in mineral resource development, stating that “The era of pit to port must end.” The statement aligned closely with Senator Nwebonyi’s “Raw Materials Processing and Local Production Protection Bill,” which seeks to amend the Raw Materials Export Prohibition Act, 2022 to mandate at least 25% local processing of Nigeria’s mineral resources before export.
Speaking at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, before an audience of West African heads of state, ministers, and key regional economic stakeholders, President Tinubu emphasized that Africa can no longer afford to miss the next industrial revolution.
“Let us also recognize that Africa was left behind in previous industrial revolutions. We cannot afford to miss the next one. Our rare minerals power tomorrow’s green technologies yet it is not enough to be resource-rich; we must become value-chain smart and invest in local processing and regional manufacturing," the President said.
His remarks came at a critical time for Senator Nwebonyi’s bill, which has already passed its public hearing stage and is nearing final passage in the National Assembly. The bill is designed to end the decades-old practice of exporting raw mineral resources in their crude form, thereby boosting domestic industries, creating jobs, and enhancing Nigeria’s economic sovereignty.
Reacting to the President’s declaration, observers at the summit described it as a strong endorsement of Senator Nwebonyi’s legislative push. The Senator has repeatedly commended President Tinubu’s progressive economic vision, calling him a leader who “thinks outside the box.” The alignment of the President’s summit remarks with the bill's core objectives has signaled a likely assent should the bill reach his desk.
The high-level summit drew participation from the Presidents of Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Senegal, The Gambia, Benin, Togo, and Guinea-Bissau, as well as ministers of finance, trade, infrastructure, and foreign affairs from ECOWAS member states. Institutions such as the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), West African Monetary Institute (WAMI), West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat were also well represented.
President Tinubu also used the occasion to highlight the potential of West Africa’s youth, warning that the region’s youthful population could become a liability without targeted investments in education, digital infrastructure, and enterprise development.
As Nigeria and its West African neighbours look to unlock the full value of their natural resources, Senator Nwebonyi’s bill backed by growing political momentum could serve as a legislative cornerstone in the region’s industrial transformation.
Romanus Uzor Ozioko is the
Special Assistant to the Senate Deputy Chief Whip on Media and Publicity.
