—Tasks stakeholders on concrete MoUs, set timelines at Bauchi Investment Summit 2025
By Johnbosco Agbakwuru
ABUJA — THE Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, on Wednesday, assured investors that the most auspicious and convenient time to choose Nigeria as an investment destination is now, saying the nation has exited its phase of economic instability.
He attributed the milestone to the decision made by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to get rid of the hurdles that had hitherto clogged the wheels of the country’s economic progress.
Speaking in Bauchi State while declaring open the Bauchi Investment Summit 2025, Senator Shettima noted that the administration assumed office in 2023 with a promise to turn around the fortune of the nation’s economy that was already tottering on the edge of financial crisis, with debt service-to-revenue ratio shooting up to about 100 percent.
He told investors and stakeholders at the two-day summit that under the Tinubu administration, debt service-to-revenue ratio has been reduced to less than 50 per cent, while the GDP growth stood at 4.23 percent as of last month.
The Vice President in a statement by his spokesman, Stanley Nkwocha was quoted as saying: “Our non-oil revenues grew by 411 per cent year-on-year in the same month. Our tax-to-GDP ratio now stands at 13.5 per cent, up from barely seven per cent a few years ago. Our debt-to-GDP ratio remains at 38.8 per cent, far below the limits set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act at 60 per cent, and those of ECOWAS and the World Bank at 70 per cent.
“Our external reserves have grown to 43 billion dollars as of September 2025. Nigeria has exited its phase of economic instability, and I assure investors present here that there is no better time to choose Nigeria.”
Explaining why the first decision made by President Tinubu “was to remove those obstacles that had become termites in the timber of” the nation’s progress, VP Shettima said, “You cannot guarantee enduring growth without stability.
“Our predecessors are here to testify to this truth. Each of them endured a fair share of obstacles and pushbacks in their efforts to introduce reforms that set the nation on the path of rediscovery and stability.”
Senator Shettima observed that no system can claim to be suitable for business if it cannot predict the outcome of its investment, maintaining that there can’t be a more potent treatment for a bad economy “than a stable economic stimulus,” which is why the Tinubu administration embarked on bold reforms.
He continued, “It was this dread that inspired our bold reforms to harmonise the exchange rate regime and to dismantle the fuel subsidy structure, an avenue that had become a theatre for round-tripping and rent-seeking, where the privileged few converted the nation’s collective patrimony into their private poverty alleviation scheme.”
“We may spend eternity debating the theories of our inactions, but the truth remains that nobody builds a house in a tsunami.”
The Vice President listed priorities in the administration’s development plan to include job creation, food security, value-chain development, and the unlocking of subnational comparative advantages, even as he pointed out that the plan “is anchored on promises that can only be realised when” stability is achieved.
These priorities, according to him, are inherently rooted in the investment opportunities Bauchi State offers, including “vast arable land and agricultural potential, abundant solid minerals, tourism and game reserves, renewable energy prospects, and improving infrastructure and business-enabling reforms.
“The Federal Government remains resolute in its commitment to ensuring security across the nation because no economy can thrive where fear replaces freedom and where insecurity undermines enterprise,” he added.
Senator Shettima said Bauchi State can spearhead “climate-smart agriculture, commercial outgrower schemes, and agro-processing hubs linked to national and export markets,” with its vast arable land and livestock, among other rich natural resources and cultural heritage that are capable of boosting tourism, hospitality, and the creative industries.
“The solid mineral reserves of this rich state can also enable responsible mining and downstream industrialisation through transparent tendering, geological mapping, and community benefit frameworks.
“Bauchi’s natural assets and cultural heritage can boost tourism, hospitality, and the creative industries, while its renewable energy and gas potential can power industrial clusters through public-private partnerships and off-grid solutions,” he maintained.
Applauding the vision of Governor Bala Mohammed for opening Bauchi State to investment, VP Shettima reaffirmed President Tinubu’s promise that under his watch, the Federal Government will treat “each state as a priority beyond the fiscal glories that accrue from the increased allocations now enjoyed across the federation.
“This is so because an affliction to any state slows down the pace of development in other parts of the nation, and this is the burden of federalism that we must never allow to slow us down. We must either grow together or falter apart,” he added
Declaring the summit open, the VP charged participants and stakeholders “to move beyond talk and commit to concrete memoranda of understanding, set timelines, and appoint joint implementation teams,” to ensure tangible milestones in project execution, insisting that programmes and projects “must align with social and environmental sustainability considerations.”
On his part, former President Olusegun Obasanjo said while the summit is an indication that there is hope for Nigeria, there is a need for partnership as a way of strengthening businesses.
He outlined what he termed the five Ps – Politics, People, Protection, Partnership and Progress, describing them as the bedrock of good investment, just as he expressed worry over the cement situation in Nigeria, calling for more action to strengthen the cement industry.
“Governance must be right because it’s about the people and there must be protection (security), or else investors will not come. There must be strong partnership at the local, community, state, and national levels, as well as the civil society, with the public and private sectors. We need partnership,” he stressed.
For his part, Governor Mohammed thanked the Vice President for always identifying with the state, assuring participants and the people of Bauchi State that the recommendations reached at the summit would be implemented.
The Governor hailed the federal government for establishing the North-East Development Commission (NEDC), which he said is driving development across the six states of the region.
He also assured investors of the safety of their lives and businesses in Bauchi, saying, “We will also utilize partnership and fight corruption in order to enable businesses thrive in our state,” he said.
Also speaking, Chairman of the North East Governors’ Forum, and Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, commended Governor Mohammed for convening the summit, saying Bauchi State’s potential in agriculture is the bedrock for its development.
Urging investors to tap from the available resources as they invest in the state, Zulum said, “Northerners are hospitable. Mineral resources and hydrocarbons are also found here in large quantity. I believe investors will have the opportunity to play around for our future development. There is ease of doing business in Bauchi and the entire North; come and do business here.”
Delivering the keynote address, former Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, noted that while leadership is about creating room for others to grow, the current global challenges require serious attention and action.
The erstwhile Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF) identified education, good governance and human capital development as bases for development at all times, positing that Public, Private Partnership (PPP) and collaboration between the federal and State governments would help boost development.
In his remarks, the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence, Abubakar Sa’ad III, regretted that while he had attended a good number of summits in the country, most of them ended with little commitment towards implementation of resolutions.
“What have we achieved? Have we really achieved the goals of such summits? I want to challenge the Governors of Northern states on this. Have we really moved our states and the north forward? I want to challenge all of us to really look inwards. Nobody can take us out of these economic challenges except we, ourselves. The North has everything needed for development,” he said.
The royal father applauded Vice President Shettima’s unflinching support for President Tinubu in leading Nigeria, just as he pledged the support of religious and traditional leaders at all times.
Stressing the need for adequate security, the Sultan said, “Our support is unwavering. But whatever you do, if there’s no security, you can’t really achieve anything,” appealing to all Nigerians to love their country and pray for their leaders instead of cursing them.
Other dignitaries in attendance include representatives of the Governors of Oyo, Gombe, Bayelsa and Jigawa States; former military administrators of Bauchi State, Chris Abutu Garuba and Raji Adisa, and Chairman/Founder of Oriental Energy Resources, Alhaji Mohammad Indimi, among others.
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