President Bola Tinubu has urged the global community to treat debt relief as a path to peace and shared prosperity, not an act of charity.
Tinubu made the appeal on Wednesday at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, Tinubu called for a binding international mechanism to manage sovereign debt,“a sort of International Court of Justice for money,” to help emerging economies escape “the economic straitjacket of primary production and unprocessed exports”.
He noted that the Lagos Action Plan, drafted decades ago to chart a course away from debt and dependence, still offers valuable guidance for adding local value through processing and manufacturing, from agriculture to solid minerals and petrochemicals.
Tinubu also highlighted the African Continental Free Trade Area as “a remarkable achievement of co-operation,” pledging Nigeria’s full commitment to the sustainable development goals through “growth and prosperity.”
Applauding the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s progress toward peace, Tinubu said Africa’s vast mineral wealth must become a source of stability rather than conflict.
“Investment in exploration, development and processing of these minerals will diversify supply to the international market, reduce tensions between major economies and help shape the architecture for peace and prosperity on a continent too often left behind by global rivalries,” he said.
Nigeria and other African nations, Tinubu added, have made significant strides in organising their affairs and can “take that progress to the next level” by pursuing reforms to strengthen the international financial architecture.
