Reported by Weng Patrick Atokor l Journalist at Weng Global
Tony Elumelu, chairman of Heirs Holdings, and Sierra Leone’s President Julius Maada Bio have urged West African businesses and international investors to mobilise private capital for industrial development, regional trade and job creation, as preparations advance for the inaugural West Africa Integration and Investment Summit scheduled for November 2026.
The two leaders made the call during a meeting of the summit’s Private Sector Advisory Board in Lagos on October 7, bringing together prominent African business executives and financial-sector representatives to discuss how investment can translate West Africa’s economic potential into productive industries and shared prosperity.
The meeting comes as West African countries seek to strengthen economic integration, expand cross-border commerce and attract investment into sectors capable of supporting long-term growth. Despite the region’s substantial natural resources, entrepreneurial capacity and large consumer market, turning these advantages into broad-based prosperity requires stronger infrastructure, effective policies and sustained investment.
For Elumelu and Bio, the priority is to move beyond declarations about regional integration and build businesses, industries and economic partnerships that can deliver tangible results.
WAIIS Places Investment at the Centre of Regional Integration
The West Africa Integration and Investment Summit, known as WAIIS 2026, is scheduled for November 17 and 18 at the Julius Maada Bio International Conference Centre in Lungi, Sierra Leone. The initiative is designed to bring political leaders, investors, financial institutions and business executives together around investment opportunities and regional economic cooperation.
The summit focuses on four strategic areas: energy trade and industrialisation, strategic minerals, agribusiness and digital transformation.
These sectors are closely connected to the region’s ability to increase production, develop regional supply chains, improve food systems, expand access to electricity and create employment.
The organisers say the initiative is intended to connect investment capital with projects that can advance regional development. Its broader ambition is to encourage investors to look beyond individual national markets and consider opportunities across West Africa.
The distinction is important. Regional integration is not achieved simply by signing agreements or holding meetings. It requires businesses to be able to move goods, obtain financing, access reliable infrastructure and operate competitively across borders.
Elumelu Calls for Businesses to Look Beyond National Borders
Elumelu’s appeal reflects his long-standing argument that African private enterprise must play a stronger role in the continent’s economic transformation.
As chairman of Heirs Holdings, he has business interests across sectors including energy, financial services, healthcare, technology and hospitality. His Africapitalism philosophy promotes long-term private-sector investment as a driver of economic and social development.
At the Lagos meeting, Elumelu reaffirmed his commitment to mobilising African and international investors to support projects with the potential to stimulate regional growth.
He also emphasised the importance of combining capital, expertise and business capabilities to build companies that can operate at scale rather than remaining confined to individual domestic markets.
Such an approach could help businesses reach larger customer bases, improve their competitiveness and benefit from economies of scale.
However, companies cannot expand across borders on ambition alone. They need predictable regulation, access to financing, dependable infrastructure and security for their investments.
Elumelu stressed that governments have a responsibility to provide policy certainty, regulatory efficiency and the conditions needed to give investors confidence to commit capital over the long term.
His message highlights a central issue for African economies: attracting investment requires not only identifying opportunities but also creating an environment in which businesses can operate, grow and generate sustainable returns.
President Bio Wants Economic Potential Converted Into Jobs
President Bio has placed regional integration and investment mobilisation at the centre of the summit initiative.
During the Lagos meeting, he called for a shift from discussions about the benefits of integration towards practical cooperation that creates productive enterprises, competitive industries and regional value chains.
Bio’s position reflects the challenge facing West Africa: a large regional market offers opportunities, but those opportunities will remain limited if businesses struggle to trade, manufacture and invest across national boundaries.
A more integrated market could help companies access additional customers, encourage investment in regional production and strengthen commercial relationships between neighbouring countries.
It could also help reduce the fragmentation that limits the ability of some African businesses to grow into major regional or international enterprises.
The key question is whether governments and private-sector leaders can turn that ambition into coordinated action, with clear investment priorities and measurable outcomes.
Energy and Industrialisation Could Shape the Region’s Competitiveness
Energy is one of the four principal investment pillars identified by WAIIS.
Reliable and affordable electricity is essential for manufacturing, agricultural processing, digital services and many other commercial activities. Where energy supplies are inadequate or expensive, businesses may face higher operating costs and struggle to compete.
Investment in electricity generation, transmission, distribution and cross-border energy trade could help improve the operating environment for businesses across the region.
Industrialisation is equally important. Expanding local manufacturing and processing could allow West African countries to retain more economic value from their raw materials, create skilled employment and reduce dependence on imported finished products.
But these gains will depend on the quality of project planning, access to long-term finance, infrastructure development and policies that encourage productive investment.
Governments and investors will also need to ensure that industrial expansion is commercially sustainable and takes account of environmental and community interests.
Strategic Minerals: Moving Beyond Raw Material Exports
Strategic minerals offer another potential source of investment and industrial development.
For resource-rich economies, the opportunity extends beyond extracting and exporting minerals. Local processing, supporting infrastructure and related manufacturing can create additional economic activity and employment.
Developing regional value chains could also encourage cooperation between countries with different resources, industrial capabilities and infrastructure.
However, investment in the minerals sector carries responsibilities. Transparent licensing, environmental protection, effective oversight and fair treatment of affected communities are essential to ensuring that mineral wealth contributes to lasting development.
The challenge for policymakers is to attract capital while ensuring that resource extraction does not come at the expense of public welfare or environmental sustainability.
Agribusiness Can Strengthen Food Systems and Employment
Agriculture remains an important source of livelihoods across West Africa, but farmers and food businesses can face challenges involving storage, transport, processing, access to finance and market connections.
Investment in irrigation, modern farming equipment, warehouses, cold-chain facilities and food-processing plants could improve productivity and reduce post-harvest losses.
Stronger regional agricultural supply chains could help producers reach more markets and support businesses involved in transportation, packaging, distribution and processing.
These investments could also contribute to food security by improving how food is produced, preserved and moved between markets.
For the benefits to reach smaller producers, financing arrangements and commercial partnerships must also give smallholder farmers and local enterprises opportunities to participate in the wider agricultural economy.
Digital Transformation Could Connect Regional Markets
Digital technology forms the fourth pillar of the summit’s investment agenda.
Digital payment systems, online marketplaces, business software and improved connectivity can help companies operate more efficiently and reach customers beyond their immediate locations.
For small businesses, digital tools can reduce some barriers to market access and provide opportunities to participate in wider commercial networks.
However, differences in regulations, digital infrastructure, payment systems and data policies can complicate cross-border operations.
Investment in connectivity, digital skills and compatible systems could help address some of these obstacles.
The region’s ability to benefit will depend on making digital services accessible and affordable while supporting the skills and infrastructure needed to use them effectively.
Major African Business Leaders Join the Initiative
The WAIIS Private Sector Advisory Board includes influential figures from African business, industry and finance.
Among those named are Aliko Dangote of Dangote Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu of BUA Group, Folorunso Alakija of FA Limited and Wale Tinubu of Oando.
Other members include Samuel Dossou-Aworet of Petrolin Group, George Elombi of Afreximbank, Samaila Zubairu of Africa Finance Corporation, Alain Ebobissé of Africa50 and Jean-Claude Kassi Brou of the Central Bank of West African States. Paulo Gomes, Benedict Okey Oramah and Habib Yérim Sow are also listed among the board’s members.
Their involvement brings experience from areas including finance, energy, infrastructure, manufacturing and investment.
Such representation could help identify projects and connect potential investors with opportunities across the region. However, participation in the advisory board does not, by itself, establish that a member has committed funding to a particular project.
The practical value of the initiative will depend on how effectively the board and participating institutions help move investment proposals towards implementation.
Why the Investment Drive Matters to Ordinary West Africans
The significance of private capital extends beyond financial markets and major companies.
When investment supports productive industries, it can create employment, strengthen supply chains, expand business opportunities and increase demand for skilled workers.
Small and medium-sized enterprises may also benefit when larger companies source goods and services locally or establish partnerships with regional suppliers.
For young people entering the labour market, the expansion of competitive businesses could open opportunities in manufacturing, technology, logistics, agriculture and professional services.
However, investment alone does not guarantee inclusive growth. Projects must be viable, jobs must be sustainable, and economic benefits must extend beyond a narrow group of companies or locations.
Governments also have a role in ensuring that economic growth is supported by appropriate labour protections, environmental safeguards and policies that allow local businesses to compete.
For West Africa, the objective should therefore be not merely to attract more capital but to channel it into activities that increase productivity and improve living standards.
What Happens Next?
The next major milestone is the inaugural WAIIS summit in Sierra Leone on November 17–18, 2026.
The event is expected to bring together political leaders, investors, financial institutions and business executives to discuss investment opportunities across the four priority sectors.
The key test will be whether the initiative produces concrete investment agreements, viable projects and clear plans for implementation.
Investors will look for credible opportunities and predictable operating conditions, while governments will be expected to address infrastructure gaps, regulatory barriers and obstacles to cross-border trade.
For Elumelu and Bio, mobilising private capital is a central part of the effort to turn regional integration into economic opportunity.
For ordinary West Africans, the lasting measure of success will be whether that effort delivers stronger industries, more competitive businesses, sustainable jobs and greater prosperity across national borders.
Weng Global — Stories beyond borders
Sources
Punch — “Elumelu, Bio rally private capital for West Africa’s growth”
Premium Times — “Sierra Leonean President Bio, Elumelu rally West African private sector to turn regional potential into investment, jobs”
The Guardian Nigeria — “Bio, Sanwo-Olu, Elumelu charge OPS on West Africa’s regional integration”
West Africa Integration and Investment Summit — Official website
