Tinubu Confers GCON on Afreximbank’s Oramah, Unveils $5bn Africa Energy Bank at Abuja Summit

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Friday honoured Professor Benedict Oramah, President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), with Nigeria’s prestigious Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) award in recognition of his transformative leadership.

Under Oramah’s stewardship, Afreximbank’s assets surged from $5 billion to over $37 billion, driving key continental initiatives in trade, healthcare, and industrialization.

Speaking at the Afreximbank Annual Meetings in Abuja, Tinubu announced Nigeria’s launch of the Africa Energy Bank on Saturday, with an initial capital of $5 billion, to finance Africa’s energy transition through gas, renewables, and clean technologies. The bank will be headquartered in Abuja, reinforcing Nigeria’s role as a continental leader.

“Under Professor Oramah, Afreximbank has championed pandemic response, the African Free Trade Area, and the creative economy—leaving a legacy of generational impact,” Tinubu said. He described the summit’s theme, “Building the Future on Decades of Resilience,” as a call to action for bold, unified progress.

The President highlighted Afreximbank’s mobilization of $250 billion for trade and development, with $52 billion directly benefiting Nigeria across sectors like energy, agriculture, and healthcare.

Key projects include the Dangote and BUA refineries, the African Medical Centre of Excellence, and Nigeria’s adoption of the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) to boost intra-African trade in local currencies.

Tinubu outlined Nigeria’s economic strides under his Renewed Hope Agenda, including:

– Fuel subsidy removal and exchange rate unification to curb fiscal distortions.

– Oil production rebound to 1.5 million barrels per day (target: 2.5 million).

– Declining inflation, naira stabilization, and reduced debt servicing (from 96% to 65% of revenue).

– Consumer credit scheme for 100,000 Nigerians, with 400,000 more in the pipeline. – Student loan programme launch to ensure education access.

– N45.9 billion allocated to upgrade 8,800 primary healthcare centres, focusing on maternal care.

The President noted 279 completed roads, 260 underway, and plans to make Nigeria Africa’s fertiliser hub (7.5 million metric tons annually).

Other projects include the $3.5 billion Bakassi Deep Seaport and expanded electricity grid infrastructure.

Tinubu urged African nations to fully adopt PAPSS to reduce forex dependence and empower SMEs. He also called for increased support to Afreximbank to scale its impact, emphasizing:

“A united Africa can define its destiny. Let history record that we chose to shape our future.”

The event concluded with the GCON conferment on Oramah, celebrating his role in advancing Africa’s economic sovereignty.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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