ABUJA — March 2026 — The AFNIS Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee has reconvened to coordinate preparations for the 5th edition of the African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit (AFNIS 2026), reinforcing the structured planning framework that has guided the platform since its inception.
The committee continues to serve as the institutional engine behind AFNIS, aligning ministries, regulatory agencies and trade institutions around programme development, stakeholder engagement and policy direction.
The committee comprises representatives from solid minerals, steel development, finance, foreign affairs, power, environment, science and technology institutions, alongside customs, immigration and trade authorities — reflecting the cross-sector nature of resource and energy development.
Building on 2025 Milestones
Opening the meeting, the Director of the Investment Promotion and Mineral Trade (IPMT) Department at the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development acknowledged the contributions of participating ministries to the success of the 2025 summit, which was hosted at the State House Conference Centre, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The previous edition, convened under the theme “Harnessing Local Content for Sustainable Development,” facilitated dialogue among government leaders, investors, industry experts and development partners from across Africa and beyond.
Two institutional milestones were highlighted:
- The launch of the Africans for Africa Fund, designed to mobilise capital for strategic mining and infrastructure projects across the continent; and
- Nigeria’s signing of the charter of the African Minerals Strategy Group, reinforcing its commitment to coordinated continental mineral development.
These outcomes, officials noted, established a foundation for scaling the summit’s continental ambition.
Institutional Continuity and Strategic Focus
Presiding over the session, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, Engr. Farouk Yabo, reaffirmed AFNIS’s role as a strategic platform within broader economic diversification and industrialisation efforts.
He noted that sustained coordination across ministries has allowed AFNIS to evolve beyond an annual convening into a structured policy and investment dialogue mechanism that integrates mining, energy, trade, fiscal and environmental priorities.
In its 5th season, the summit’s planning process has become an established institutional routine rather than a one-off mobilisation exercise.
He described the summit as one of Nigeria’s principal platforms for showcasing its natural resource endowment while engaging both public and private sector actors on pathways toward achieving a $1 trillion economy; with particular emphasis on solid minerals as a diversification anchor.
However, he stressed that the mission of AFNIS extends beyond national positioning.
While hosted in Nigeria, the 2026 edition — themed “One Africa, One Resource Vision” — is intended to advance a unified continental approach to mineral resource development. The shift marks an evolution from last year’s focus on local content toward a broader agenda of integrated African resource governance and investment coordination.
The Permanent Secretary underscored the expectation that AFNIS should increasingly position itself within the league of established global mining and energy platforms, referencing international benchmarks such as Mining Indaba and major North American resource conferences.
Strategic Focus Areas for 2026
According to deliberations at the meeting, AFNIS 2026 will prioritise:
- Continental cooperation in resource governance
- Value addition and industrialisation across mineral value chains
- Innovation and technology in exploration and resource management
- Facilitating cross-border investment partnerships in natural resources and energy
The convening of the inter-ministerial committee is designed to ensure that policy dialogue, investment engagement and operational logistics are aligned across government institutions.
Institutional Coordination as Investment Signal
The committee’s composition underscores the interdependence of mining and energy development with:
- Fiscal and revenue policy
- Trade facilitation and export competitiveness
- Infrastructure and power reliability
- Environmental governance
- International investment diplomacy
Maintaining multi-agency coordination over successive years provides a signal of policy alignment; a factor closely watched by long-term investors in strategic minerals and energy infrastructure.
Such cross-sector alignment is increasingly viewed by international investors as a prerequisite for large-scale capital deployment in mining and energy projects.
The Permanent Secretary emphasised that the platform should generate forward-looking, policy-relevant themes that reflect current global dynamics while aligning with Federal Government priorities across solid minerals, energy, agriculture, customs and trade.
AFNIS at Five Years: Institutional Maturity and Global Ambition
As AFNIS approaches its fifth edition, the planning committee is focused on refining programme architecture, expanding African ministerial participation and strengthening investor engagement mechanisms.
The objective is not merely execution, but continued elevation of AFNIS as a continental policy and investment reference point within Africa’s resource landscape.
Under the banner of “One Africa, One Resource Vision,” AFNIS 2026 represents the next phase in the summit’s institutional evolution as a continental strategy platform.
Closing thought
Over successive editions, AFNIS has matured into a recurring dialogue platform convening policymakers, development finance institutions, private capital, operators and regional stakeholders.
The steering committee’s reconvening demonstrates continuity in governance and reinforces the summit’s structured planning cycle.
Rather than a singular event announcement, preparations for AFNIS 2026 reflect the consolidation of a five-year institutional trajectory aimed at strengthening Africa’s investment narrative in natural resources and energy.
In positioning the summit under “One Africa, One Resource Vision,” the Federal Government has signalled that AFNIS is no longer solely a national showcase, but an instrument for shaping Africa’s collective resource future.