Category: Business Day

The boardroom was silent as the project update wrapped up. The leader had spoken with confidence, charts were polished, and strategies were neatly outlined. But everyone in the room knew the reality: the numbers didn’t add up. The missing voice wasn’t leadership; it was followership. No one wanted to be the person to puncture optimism. Fear of being dismissed, labelled, or sidelined kept lips sealed. The plan moved forward, the project derailed, and the cost was millions. At its heart, the breakdown wasn’t just in strategy but in trust.

Trust, or the absence of it, is the invisible currency of organisations. Leaders may design the vision, but followers decide whether that vision lives or dies by their willingness to engage, challenge, and commit. And followers, in turn, only bring their full selves when trust makes it safe to do so. Without trust, followers retreat into silence, leaders double down on control, and organisations bleed creativity.

‘Without trust, followers retreat into silence, leaders double down on control, and organisations bleed creativity.’

The conversation around leadership has always been obsessed with authority, charisma, and strategy. Yet the overlooked truth is this: trust is the glue that makes followership work. When followers trust their leaders, they contribute boldly. When leaders trust their followers, they grant space to influence outcomes. In fact, the strength of any organisation rests not on individual brilliance but on the mutual trust between those who lead and those who follow.

A 2024 Deloitte study found that 79 percent of employees who strongly trust their leaders are more engaged, productive, and willing to innovate. Conversely, in workplaces where trust is fragile, turnover increases by nearly 40 percent. The research is clear: trust isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s the engine of performance. But here’s the nuance often missed: trust doesn’t just flow downward from leaders to followers. It flows upward and sideways, too. Followers, through their integrity, accountability, and courage, earn and extend trust just as much as leaders do.

The art of followership is, therefore, inseparable from the practice of trust. Courageous followers do not confuse silence with loyalty. They speak truthfully, but they also do so responsibly, to advance collective success rather than vent frustration. They hold themselves accountable, delivering not only on tasks but also on the unspoken commitment to strengthen the social contract of trust in their teams. And they amplify peers, reinforcing a culture where trust is shared rather than hoarded.

Consider the subtle but powerful difference between two employees. One notices a flaw in a rollout plan but says nothing until the mistake surfaces. The other raises it in the meeting, framing it as a contribution to success: ‘I see a potential gap here; how might we address it before it becomes a problem?’ The first employee protects themself but erodes trust. The second risk is discomfort but it builds the team’s confidence in collective honesty. Trust grows when followers practise this kind of courage.

Of course, trust is fragile. Followers often wonder: What if my leader retaliates? What if speaking up costs me opportunities? These are valid fears. But the paradox is that this trust cannot exist without risk. To follow well is to invest in trust even when outcomes aren’t guaranteed. And when multiple followers model this courage consistently, they create a climate where leaders are compelled to reciprocate.

So, what does it look like to practise followership through the lens of trust? It looks like reframing your voice as a contribution rather than a confrontation. It looks like stepping into the initiative rather than waiting passively for permission. It looks like building coalitions of peer courage so that truth-telling is shared, not isolated. Above all, it looks like aligning actions with integrity so that your presence adds weight to the culture rather than subtracts from it.

Here are questions worth pausing over: Do I withhold my perspective out of fear, and in doing so weaken the trust my team needs? Do I treat my leader’s shortcomings as reasons for withdrawal or as opportunities to engage constructively? When colleagues speak truth, do I add my voice in solidarity or quietly watch from the sidelines? And perhaps most uncomfortably: am I trustworthy myself in the way I handle responsibility, honesty, and accountability?

This week, I challenge you to practise one deliberate act of trust-building as a follower. Speak up with honesty in a meeting where silence feels easier. Take ownership of a task without waiting for direction. Or affirm a colleague who risks candour, so their courage doesn’t echo in a vacuum.

Because here’s the truth: leadership without followership is empty, and followership without trust is impossible. The future of work will not be defined by charismatic leaders alone but by brave followers who choose to trust, engage, and act with integrity. Trust is not given; it is built. And every follower holds the power to shape it.

In the end, leaders may set the direction, but it is trust cultivated daily by those who follow that determines whether organisations merely move or truly soar.

Stanbic IBTC Holdings has named Chuma Nwokocha as its new Group Managing Director. His appointment brings an end to Adekunle Adedeji’s interim stewardship at the helm of the financial services giant.

Adedeji had held the acting role since October 2024. He stepped in following the retirement of Demola Sogunle, a stalwart of the Stanbic IBTC group. Sogunle bowed out after an illustrious 34-year career with the institution.

The appointment places Nwokocha at the head of one of Nigeria’s largest and most diversified financial services groups. The group’s operations span banking, pensions, asset management, insurance, and investment banking.

His elevation is seen as a strategic move to steady the organisation at a delicate time. It also draws on his vast experience across African markets, where regulatory oversight and competitive pressures have repeatedly tested financial leaders.

A banking career forged through turbulence

Nwokocha’s appointment is not without intrigue. Before taking the Stanbic role, he served as Regional Managing Director for Southern Africa at Access Bank Plc. In that position, he oversaw the bank’s subsidiaries in Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, and Angola.

It was, however, his years in Mozambique that defined his reputation. He emerged as both a resilient executive and a survivor of regulatory storms. In July 2021, while leading Standard Bank Mozambique, the country’s central bank accused him of misconduct. Alongside the director of the Corporate and Investment division, Carlos Madeira, he was alleged to have fraudulently manipulated the exchange rate. The Bank of Mozambique imposed a fine, casting a long shadow over the institution’s standing.

For many executives, such a confrontation could have ended a career. Yet just six months later, in January 2022, a Mozambican court acquitted him of any wrongdoing. The ruling cleared his name and allowed him to resume his career trajectory.

The episode, far from derailing him, seemed to harden his ability to manage crises. Soon after, he transitioned to Access Bank Plc. There, he was tasked with leading its Southern African division.

By the end of FY 2024, the five subsidiaries under his supervision had swung back to profitability. They posted a combined net income of $23.4 million, compared to a net loss of $1.2 million in the previous year. Their total assets also surged, rising from $1.96 billion in 2023 to $2.53 billion in 2024. The turnaround underscored his ability to stabilise and grow regional operations.

From finance director to bank chief

It is unknown when Nwokocha’s career with Standard Bank Mozambique started. However, in May 2014, he joined the bank’s board as Executive Director in charge of finance. He had previously served as the bank’s director for individuals, small businesses, and SME banking. By January 2015, he was elevated to Chief Executive Officer of Standard Bank Mozambique, a position in which he delivered measurable results.

Under his leadership, the bank’s total assets expanded from $1.47 billion at the end of FY 2014 to $2.24 billion by FY 2021. Its loan book grew by 56 percent over the period, rising to $1.54 billion from $985 million. Customer deposits also jumped by 49 percent, reaching $1.70 billion compared to $1.14 billion at the start of his tenure. These figures cemented his reputation as a leader capable of driving growth even in a challenging and highly competitive banking environment. The first test in Lagos

Yet Nwokocha assumes the leadership of Stanbic IBTC Holdings at a time when the group is locked in a major regulatory crosswind. In September, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) imposed a fine of N50.15 billion on Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited, the group’s investment banking arm.

The sanction arose from Stanbic IBTC Capital’s role as lead issuing house in the Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) public offer. The firm was found to have used internet banking platforms and mobile applications to collect share applications without first obtaining the SEC’s mandatory ‘No Objection’ approval.

The penalty, one of the largest ever imposed by Nigeria’s capital market regulator, has sparked concerns about the group’s compliance culture and governance standards. For Nwokocha, the timing of this crisis could hardly be more consequential. His first challenge as Group Managing Director will be steering Stanbic IBTC through the regulatory quagmire. He must also restore confidence among shareholders, regulators, and the investing public.

His past brushes with regulators, especially his acquittal in Mozambique, may prove invaluable in guiding the group through this storm.

Observers argue that his mix of African banking experience, resilience under regulatory pressure, and a proven track record of growth in difficult markets makes him a unique fit for the role. The financial community will be watching closely to see how his leadership translates from the Maputo courts to the Lagos boardrooms. Stanbic IBTC now faces a defining moment in its bid to reinforce its reputation as one of Nigeria’s premier financial services groups.

President Bola Tinubu will in continuation of his tour of states, on Saturday, visit Jos, Plateau State, where he will meet a cross section of religious leaders.

Bayo Onanuga, the special adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, said the President, while in the Plateau State capital, will also attend the funeral prayers in honour of Nana Lydia Yilwatda Goshwe, mother of the APC National Chairman, Nantewe Yilwatda. The President’s meeting with Church Leaders across the North, is expected to take place at the headquarters of the Church of Christ in Nigeria COCIN, in Jos.

Onanuga said that President Tinubu will return to Lagos on the same day after the visit. Recall that the President recently embarked on visit to states, as part of his efforts to build unity and strengthen social cohesion.

The visit had started with Kaduna, thereafter, he was in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital to attend the coronation of Rashid Ladoja as the Olubadan. He was also in Owerri, the Imo State capital to launch legacy projects built by Governor Hope Uzodimma.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has sealed two Chinese-owned supermarkets in Abuja’s Jabi District and eight cosmetics shops in Wuse Market for what it described as flagrant breaches of regulations governing the sale, distribution and labelling of controlled products in Nigeria.

In a statement on Friday, Adegboyega Osiyemi, NAFDAC’s Deputy Director of Public Relations and Protocol, said the agency confiscated and evacuated unregistered products worth more than N170m during the enforcement exercise.

The operation was conducted by the Investigation and Enforcement Directorate of NAFDAC in conjunction with the Federal Task Force on Counterfeit and Substandard Medicines and Unwholesome Processed Foods, led by Assistant Chief Regulatory Officer, Musa Embugushiki.

According to the agency, the supermarkets located on Mike Akhigbe Way and Ebitu Ukiwe Street in Jabi were sealed following credible consumer complaints and surveillance, which revealed that they were selling unregistered food items and products labelled exclusively in Chinese, in violation of NAFDAC’s mandatory policy requiring English translations for all products sold in Nigeria.

‘Despite initial resistance and denials by the foreign national operating the outlet on Ebitu Street, who claimed the supermarket had not commenced business, the enforcement team confirmed it was fully operational and actively selling unregistered products,’ the statement noted.

In a related operation, eight cosmetics shops in Wuse Market were also sealed for selling banned, expired and unregistered products, including aphrodisiacs and aesthetic medicines. Investigations revealed that some individuals were unlawfully posing as dermatologists and pharmacists, prescribing and marketing harmful products to unsuspecting customers under the guise of body enhancement, skin whitening, aesthetic improvement for women and sexual performance for men.

Items seized included Wenicks Capsules, Maxman Capsules, Boobs Enlargement formulations, Curvy Weight Gain supplements, Skin Whitening Vitamin Gummies, Collagen, Royal Jelly, Glutathione Whitening Gummies, White Doll, Dr Gallery Plus, Maiz Zaki Syrup, Original Herbal Yellow Fever medicine, Sickle Cell Medicine, Dr Nafisa Herbal Medicine, Dynewell Syrup and White Blinks, among others.

Mojisola Adeyeye, NAFDAC Director-General, warned that many of the banned cosmetics and herbal medicines pose severe health risks, ranging from skin cancer and kidney damage to irritability and memory loss.

She reiterated the agency’s mandate to safeguard Nigerians from exposure to dangerous chemicals and toxic substances, stressing that NAFDAC would continue to enforce compliance with its regulations.

The agency urged consumers to purchase only NAFDAC-registered products, while advising foreign nationals and investors intending to import or market goods in Nigeria to seek regulatory guidance and product registration at NAFDAC offices nationwide.

Goodluck Jonathan, former President has disclosed that he had hoped Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria’s immediate past president, would be able to solve Nigeria’s Boko Haram insurgency problem since he was once nominated by the group to represent them in peace talks with the federal government during his administration’s search for a negotiated settlement.

Jonathan made the revelation on Friday at the public presentation of Scars: Nigeria’s Journey and the Boko Haram Conundrum, authored by former Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor (rtd), held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.

‘One of the major scars on my government is the scar of the Chibok girls. It is a scar that will die with me.

‘During one of the processes we initiated for dialogue, the insurgents put forward Buhari to lead their team to negotiate with government’, Jonathan said.

The former president explained that he had hoped Buhari’s later emergence as president would ease the path to dialogue and a possible surrender. ‘But the insurgency still persisted,’ he lamented, describing the crisis as ‘far more complex than often presented.’

Jonathan recalled that as vice president under the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, he had witnessed the success of dialogue and amnesty in resolving militancy in the Niger Delta.

However, he admitted Boko Haram proved more complicated, with external involvement suspected in the flow of sophisticated arms and ammunition into Nigeria.

‘The issue of carrots and the stick may be adopted,’ Jonathan suggested, adding that his administration had explored multiple committees and approaches.

‘If it was just about hunger, it would have been easy to solve. Boko Haram is beyond that’, he added.

On the Chibok girls abducted in 2014, Jonathan said the tragedy left a permanent mark on his administration.

‘No plastic or cosmetic surgery can remove it,’ he said, adding that he still hopes one day Boko Haram leaders will document their motivations and actions to help Nigerians understand the group’s origins.

President Bola Tinubu, represented by Mohammed Abubakar, the Minister of Defence, pledged that his administration would not relent until insecurity is defeated across Nigeria.

He described Irabor’s book as ‘not only history, but guidance for the present and a roadmap for the future,’ stressing the need for collective effort to restore peace. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who chaired the event, said insecurity had evolved from insurgency in the Northeast to banditry, kidnapping, and other violent crimes across the country.

Drawing from his 2011 visit to Maiduguri after the UN building bombing, he argued that Boko Haram’s roots lay more in socio-economic grievances than religion or politics.

‘We cannot continue this way,’ Obasanjo warned, urging those with inside knowledge of the group’s early years to write books or speak up.

Babagana Monguno, former National Security Adviser, described Scars as ‘apt’ and called for national re-engineering to address issues of power struggles, resource allocation, and ethnic mistrust, which he said fuel insecurity.

He lamented Nigeria’s lack of cohesion and warned that ‘you can never address insecurity in as much as there is impaired national cohesion.’

Matthew Kukah, Book reviewer, said Boko Haram is more of an ideological war than a military one, adding that ‘all the military operations with different code names have not ended the insurgency.’

He stressed the need for ‘soft power’ approaches such as good governance, reconciliation, and civic engagement.

‘The urgency is not about more guns but about building a ‘war room’ where military and intelligence leaders think ahead about tomorrow,’ Kukah argued.

Sa’ad Abubakar III, Sultan of Sokoto, reinforced the call for tolerance, stressing that Islam advocates good governance and not extremism.

He condemned the misuse of ‘jihad’ as justification for violence.

Lucky Irabor, author of the book, said Scars was written to focus national attention on credible solutions to insecurity.

‘This is not an indictment. It is a national soul-searching presentation. I have always believed man exists to solve problems, and this book is my contribution to that effort’, he emphasized.

He urged Nigerians to recommit to building a nation anchored on justice, equity, and peace.

The event was attended by dignitaries including Christopher Musa, Chief of Defence Staff, former Service Chiefs General Alexander Ogomudia and Vice ,

Atiku Bagudu, Minister of Budget and Planning.

Others who spoke at the event, acknowledged the devastating impact of Boko Haram since 2009 and called for innovative strategies to finally end a menace that has outlived four administrations.

Nigeria marks 65 years of independence with a health system once celebrated as a beacon of modern medicine now drained of the very healers needed to keep it alive. Citizens are left to navigate a system that can’t even provide even the most basic care.

At independence, health institutions such as the University College Hospital (UCH) in Ibadan were proud examples for medical advancement, attracting patients from West Africa and beyond. However, that image is fading fast.

From primary healthcare centres to teaching hospitals, healthcare providers such as doctors, nurses, and specialists are leaving in droves. Over 15,000 nurses migrated to the UK in the last five years, while nearly 20,000 doctors exited the system between 2005 and 2024, according to the National Association of Resident Doctors. The result is that Nigeria now has just 2.9 doctors per 10,000 people, a fraction of the World Health Organization’s recommended 17 per 10,000.

The exodus reflects the rot that has long plagued the sector-dilapidated infrastructure, obsolete or absent equipment, poor welfare, and harsh working conditions. Primary healthcare centres, the backbone of care delivery, often lack electricity, clean water, and even essential medicines.

‘The health sector has retrogressed significantly. In the 60s, we had quality medical services that were affordable, and even free. A medical doctor on employment was given a car. What I see now is shocking,’ said Olayinka Oladimeji, former director, Primary Healthcare Systems Development.

Brian Deaver, chief executive officer of African Medical Centre of Excellence, put it more bluntly. ‘Nigeria will struggle to deliver healthcare for citizens if health professionals remain unappreciated and burned-out. If we want a system that heals, we must start by building environments where caregivers thrive,’ he told a BusinessDay health conference.

Experts argue that these deficiencies are symptoms of decades of underfunding, underinvestment and lack of political will from the very leaders who choose foreign healthcare, which costs the nation about $2 billion in annual losses.

According to Adetolu Ademujimi, technical advisor, Health Financing, APIN Public Health Initiatives, the loss of workforce is currently the biggest challenge, but the foundational challenge remains the funding structure.

According to him, the constitution gives the federal government more funds, while states and local governments with the largest population of healthcare needs take barely 20 percent and 18 percent respectively.

Experts believe this underfunding has created a system highly dependent on household spending, making healthcare more expensive for citizens and pushing millions into poverty.

Over 70 percent of healthcare costs are borne by patients, placing the country among the highest globally, and demonstrating government’s failure to achieve the Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

Health insurance coverage is crawling with barley 20 million Nigerians covered out of the estimated 220m citizens. Public health financing remains at around 5 percent of total expenditure, far below the 15 percent target.

Consequently, a 2024 World Bank report noted that health-related expenses pushed over one million Nigerians into poverty yearly. For millions, seeking care means deciding whether to buy drugs or pay school fees

The country has one of the world’s highest maternal mortality rates, as women delay antenatal visits or deliver at home to avoid fees. Patients with diabetes or hypertension ration drugs or abandon treatment to avoid catastrophic spending.

Only about two million indigent Nigerians have financial protection under the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund out of the over 83 million identified as vulnerable population.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, reflecting on the country’s healthcare last month, lamented the cost of care.

‘Our most critical challenges are access to quality and affordable health care for all. When I reflect on the Nigeria we envisioned at independence, and even more so during my years of service in government, health care was never meant to be a luxury. It was to be a fundamental right, accessible 365 days. This was what was envisaged for Nigeria. Yet, we know the truth,’ he said.

Not all gloom

But it’s not all gloom and doom. Nigeria has seen some growth in private healthcare and investment, having attracted more than $4.8b billion particularly in local pharmaceutical manufacturing, boosted by government policy incentives, according to the presidency. The cut in international aid is also forcing the government to rethink health financing, and deepen partnership with the private sector.

Furthermore, Nigeria’s disease surveillance capacity has improved with the Surveillance Outbreak Response Management and Analysis System and the establishment ofPublic Health Emergency Operations Centres. Laboratory infrastructure has also been upgraded, with advanced molecular technologies enabling quicker identification of pathogens. The country’s Joint External Evaluation score under International Health Regulations rose from 39 percent in 2017 to 54 percent in 2023, a sign of progress.

For Oladimeji, the low-hanging fruit lies in decentralising the system and revamping primary healthcare facilities for immediate impact.

A fresh crisis is brewing in the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) following a power tussle between Iliyah Damagum, the party’s national chairman, and Samuel Anyanwu, the national secretary.

Both leaders are locked in a supremacy battle over who has the authority to summon meetings of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC).

Anyanwu had unilaterally voided an earlier NWC decision dissolving the Akwa Ibom State Working Committee, whose tenure had expired.

BusinessDay gathered that at the 607th NWC meeting, summoned by the national chairman, the party constituted an 18-member caretaker committee to oversee the state chapter’s affairs pending a new congress.

But Anyanwu later issued a counter-directive to the Akwa Ibom PDP, urging it to ignore the national leadership’s directive. He described the NWC meeting as ‘illegal.’

Ologuagba dismisses Anyanwu’s claims

Reacting on Thursday, Debo Ologuagba, the party’s national publicity secretary, dismissed Anyanwu’s action, insisting that a single individual cannot override a binding NWC decision.

‘Sixteen out of the 18 members of the NWC participated in the meeting where the decision was taken,’ Ologuagba said, stressing that the chairman acted in line with Section 35 of the PDP Constitution.

‘This party is strong and has the capacity to put itself together at the appropriate time. Every action we have taken so far is towards a successful convention,’ he added.

Ologuagba insisted that preparations for the elective convention, scheduled for Ibadan on November 15 and 16, were on course.

‘No one can stop the convention. We have consulted widely with every stakeholder, every chapter, every organ of the party. Everything that needs to be done is being done, and seamlessly,’ he assured.

Anyanwu doubles down

In a counter-statement, Anyanwu urged the Akwa Ibom PDP to disregard the dissolution, claiming no formal NWC was sitting to approve it.

He also accused Ologuagba of exceeding his mandate, declaring the earlier announcement ‘null and void and of no effect.’

Reaffirming the authority of the Akwa Ibom leadership, he directed state chairman Aniekan Akpan and his team to continue in office under the PDP Constitution.

Analysts warn of possible disruption

The contradictory directives have heightened tension within the party, fuelling fears that the tussle could undermine preparations for the Ibadan convention.

A party official, who spoke anonymously, suggested that ‘external forces’ may be instigating the crisis to derail the convention.

‘We have done very well so far in our preparations, but some people are not happy that the PDP is still vibrant and will do everything to destroy the party,’ the source said.

‘The PDP is bigger than individuals’

Ologuagba, however, stressed that the party remains united.

‘The PDP is above any individual. This is the only truly democratic party where ideas are contested, where we agree and disagree in orderliness. The Constitution prescribes order, and it is binding on all members,’ he said.

Citing Section 35 of the PDP Constitution, he reaffirmed that the chairman is the chief executive of the party, with the mandatory function of summoning and presiding over meetings of the NEC, national caucus, and NWC.

‘The chairman acted in full compliance with the Constitution when he convened the 607th NWC meeting,’ Ologuagba noted, assuring members that the party has internal mechanisms to ensure discipline and order.

The inaugural Africa E-commerce Summit in Lagos brought together policymakers, innovators, and business leaders to chart the course for Africa’s digital trade future, emphasizing robust regulation, infrastructure, and cross-border collaboration.

Held alongside the launch of e-commerce pioneer Saudat Salami’s memoir, Selling Pepper Online, the summit underscored the transformative potential of digital trade for the continent’s economy.

The summit opened with a high-level panel on E-commerce Regulations, Policy Frameworks, and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), moderated by Ms. Ifeoma Oma Ehiri, technical advisor at GIZ. Panelists, including trade policy experts, customs officials, and agricultural leaders, explored how streamlined regulations and infrastructure could unlock Africa’s digital trade ecosystem.

Bernard Tayo, head of project at GIZ, highlighted AfCFTA’s role, stating, ‘It creates a structure that allows Africans to trade among themselves with limited obstacles. Digital trade makes it even easier, enabling businesses to reach customers without moving from their base.’

Nigeria’s advancements were spotlighted by Ijeoma Ayoka, chief superintendent of Customs, who detailed the new Unified Customs Management System (UCMS). The system streamlines electronic goods declarations and accelerates parcel processing, empowering SMEs to participate in cross-border e-commerce.

Meanwhile, Oluranti Oviebo, director at the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture, emphasized the need for cold rooms, conditioning centers, and farmer training to scale agri-ecommerce, alongside private-sector partnerships to bolster food systems.

A regional perspective came from ECOWAS, which, with GIZ support, is harmonizing e-commerce policies across its 12 member states to facilitate smoother intra-African trade.

A second panel on Grocery Delivery, Agriculture, and Accelerating Growth showcased how innovations in logistics and digital platforms are driving job creation and SME growth, critical components of Africa’s digital economy.

The summit’s discussions were grounded by the inspiring story of Saudat Salami, who launched Nigeria’s first online grocery platform, TV Shop, in 2001 with just $15, later scaling Easyshop Easycook into Africa’s first online grocery delivery service.

Marking her 50th birthday, Salami launched her memoir, Selling Pepper Online, sharing lessons on overcoming challenges in sourcing, logistics, and capital-raising.

She urged greater collaboration, saying, ‘We cannot build the future alone. We need policy, infrastructure, investment, and partnerships. This summit is our lighthouse, a call to action.’

Participants agreed that Africa’s e-commerce future hinges on innovation, inclusive policies, and the active involvement of women, youth, and SMEs. By addressing regulatory and infrastructural gaps, the summit laid a foundation for a thriving digital economy, with AfCFTA as a key enabler.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 65th Independence Day address was designed as a reassurance. With a flourish of statistics, he declared that Nigeria has ‘turned the corner’. GDP growth is accelerating, inflation has slowed, reserves are healthier, and non-oil revenues are rising. On paper, the arithmetic looks impressive. Yet in the real economy, the one measured by food prices, power supply, and security of daily life, the corner is not yet turned. Nigerians are still waiting for proof that reform has meaning beyond the spreadsheet.

Take the GDP numbers. The 4.23 percent growth recorded in Q2 2025 is indeed Nigeria’s fastest in four years. But compare it with the country’s population growth of 2.4 percent, and the per capita improvement is barely above subsistence. Worse, a significant share of this expansion comes from oil output rebounding to 1.68 million barrels per day. Oil is an unreliable crutch. Sabotage, price volatility, or OPEC constraints can quickly unravel such gains. True growth must come from industries that employ people and add value locally: agriculture, manufacturing, and services, not just crude extraction.

‘This is the deeper problem with Tinubu’s narrative: it confuses macro arithmetic with national rescue. Nigerians want electricity that works, not just megawatts in a budget. They want rice they can afford, not just GDP statistics. They want teachers in classrooms, not just enrollment figures.’

Tinubu also points to declining inflation: 20.12 percent in August, the lowest in three years. That is better than the 30 percent highs of 2023, but hardly a victory. For ordinary families, 20 percent inflation is economic violence; it erodes wages, empties savings, and forces impossible trade-offs. Nigeria’s food inflation still hovers above 28 percent, one of the highest in Africa, higher than Ghana’s 23 percent and far worse than South Africa’s 5.3 percent. The government celebrates disinflation as though prices are falling. They are not. Prices are simply rising at a slightly slower pace, and for millions, the pain remains acute.

Foreign reserves at $42 billion are another headline the President touted. This matters for stabilising the naira, which has indeed regained some footing after last year’s chaos. Yet reserves are not the same as prosperity. They are buffers, not bread. The gap between the official and parallel exchange rates has narrowed, but imported inflation still makes basic goods unaffordable. Until local productivity increases, a strong reserve position risks being just another fragile illusion.

The government’s social interventions, ?330 billion to eight million households, are cast as a safety net. In truth, they function as expensive Band-Aids. Cash transfers can relieve hunger for a month; they cannot build livelihoods for a lifetime. Nigeria needs job creation, not perpetual stipends. Youth credit initiatives such as NELFUND, Credicorp, and YouthCred are welcome in theory, but Nigerians have seen such schemes before: well-packaged, loudly announced, poorly tracked, and eventually captured by rent-seekers. Transparency, independent audits, and scale will decide whether these schemes lift millions or enrich a few.

Security claims demand equal scrutiny. Tinubu lauded the gallantry of the armed forces, declaring that terrorism has been rolled back and peace restored to hundreds of communities. That is true in pockets. But insecurity has not abated; it has mutated. Banditry in the Northwest, kidnappings in the Middle Belt, communal clashes in Plateau, oil theft in the Delta, and separatist violence in the Southeast still blight daily life. According to SBM Intelligence, at least 1,200 Nigerians were kidnapped in the first half of 2025 alone. Schools remain vulnerable to abductions, farmers to raids, and traders to extortion on highways. ‘Peace’ on paper is not the same as safety on the ground.

This is the deeper problem with Tinubu’s narrative: it confuses macro arithmetic with national rescue. Nigerians want electricity that works, not just megawatts in a budget. They want rice they can afford, not just GDP statistics. They want teachers in classrooms, not just enrollment figures. They want to feel safe walking to the market, not just hear speeches about cleared towns. Until these realities change, claims of ‘turning the corner’ will ring hollow.

Credit must be given where it is due. Removing subsidies and unifying FX were politically costly choices; previous governments kicked those cans down the road. But courage in policy must be followed by honesty in delivery. The claim that ‘the worst is over’ is premature unless matched by clear metrics: falling food inflation, verifiable poverty reduction, transparent audits of social spending, and genuine industrial take-off. Otherwise, the reforms risk being remembered as another cycle of austerity without transformation.

Nigeria at 65 is at a crossroads, not a corner. It faces the same structural bind that has haunted it for decades: a state too weak to deliver services, an elite too insulated from the consequences of failure, and a population too resilient for its own good. Nigerians endure, adapt, and survive. But endurance is not prosperity.

Tinubu’s administration must now prove that the numbers it celebrates translate into improved lives. Growth must mean jobs. Reserves must mean stability. Inflation declines must mean food on the table. Otherwise, Independence anniversaries will continue to be marked by speeches of promise while reality tells another story.

On this anniversary, Nigerians deserve more than statistics; they deserve a government that converts reform into dignity, numbers into nourishment, and rhetoric into results. The next test is not the President’s next speech, but whether, by Nigeria’s 66th Independence Day, the country feels more secure, better fed, better educated, and genuinely on the path to prosperity.

Until then, the question remains: has Nigeria really turned the corner, or is it still circling the roundabout of promises unmet?

Nigeria and China are set to consolidate their fast-rising bilateral trade relations, which have already crossed $20 billion annually in the last years, through the 2025 edition of the China Commodities Expo-Nigeria (CCE).

The annual Expo, scheduled to be held from November 5 to 7 in Lagos, is expected to host over 250 Chinese manufacturers and more than 5,000 Nigerian and international business representatives.

CCE is organised by the Trade Development Bureau of China’s Ministry of Commerce in collaboration with Brightway International Exhibition.

Speaking on the significance of the event, Muheez Ojulari, Chief Representative Officer of Brightway International Exhibition, said the Expo was designed to consolidate the upward trend in bilateral trade.

‘This Expo is not just about trade, it is about building bridges of opportunity that connect Nigerian entrepreneurs with global supply chains. We want Nigerian firms to walk away not only with contracts, but with long-term partnerships that can strengthen their competitiveness at home and abroad,’ he said.

The Expo comes at a time when bilateral trade between the nations is witnessing robust growth. According to Chinese customs data, trade volumes between Nigeria and China reached $23.9 billion in 2022, with China exporting $22.3 billion worth of goods to Nigeria while importing $1.6 billion. In the first three quarters of 2023, trade hit $17.25 billion, boosted by a 22.5 percent rise in Chinese imports from Nigeria.

By 2024, volumes again surpassed $20 billion, while in the first seven months of 2025 alone, bilateral trade climbed to $15.48 billion, a 34.7 percent year-on-year increase, positioning Nigeria as China’s second-largest trading partner in Africa.

Since its inception in 2007, the annual CCE has grown into one of Nigeria’s largest trade events, supported by key Nigerian chambers of commerce, trade associations, and ministries at both state and federal levels. It is expected to draw importers, exporters, industry captains, government officials, and entrepreneurs from across Africa.

China’s investment footprint in Nigeria continues to deepen, with more than $1.5 billion committed to zones such as the Lekki Free Trade Zone and Ogun-Guangdong Free Trade Zone, generating over 7,000 jobs. Beyond trade, the Expo is also targeting youth-focused entrepreneurship by linking Nigerian startups and SMEs with Chinese venture capital and technology partners.

Ojulari said, ‘This Expo matters because it gives Nigerian firms direct visibility before Chinese manufacturers who control global supply chains. It’s a chance to negotiate better terms, secure financing, and diversify our exports.’

With Nigeria-China trade already on a strong growth trajectory, the 2025 Expo is poised to serve as a critical platform to sustain momentum, unlock investment opportunities, and deepen bilateral economic relations.