Holds High-Level Consultations as Special Envoy to advance discussions on the upcoming Regional Integration and Investment Summit in West Africa
Abuja, Nigeria, 30 January 2026:- Hon. Dr. Kandeh K. Yumkella, Chairman of the Presidential Initiative on Climate Change, Renewable Energy and Food Security, has concluded a high-level shuttle diplomatic mission to the Federal Republic of Nigeria following his appointment by His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio as Special Envoy for the upcoming ECOWAS Integration and Investment Summit.
Marking the 50th anniversary of ECOWAS, the summit aims to revitalize the region’s economic agenda by facilitating bankable investments and promoting regional value chains across four strategic pillars – Energy Trade, Strategic Minerals, Agribusiness, and Digital Transformation. This high-profile event will convene Heads of State, ministers, private sector leaders, development finance institutions, and other regional organizations.
Nigeria marks Yumkella’s first diplomatic stop as part of a first round of consultations and preparatory engagements across the ECOWAS region. These engagements are aimed at redefining West Africa’s development pathway by unlocking investment in the region’s abundant natural endowments as drivers of industrial development, job creation, and shared prosperity.
In Nigeria, the delegation has had meetings with the President of the ECOWAS Commission (H.E. Dr. Omar Alieu Touray) and Vice President (Mme. Damtiens Larbli Tchintchibidja). The delegation held ensuing discussions with Commissioners and Directors of the Commission, government officials of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (i.e., Minister of Power, Permanent Secretary and team of Directors; Director General of the West Africa Power Pool; the Permanent Secretary of Solid Minerals and his team of Directors, the Executive Director of West Africa Economic Summit (WAES) Secretariat within the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Director General of the African Development Bank in Nigeria and senior executives of Sustainable Energy for ALL office.
The ECOWAS Investment Summit signals a deliberate shift toward action-oriented regional integration, where high-level political commitment is reinforced by structured economic collaboration, strategic partnerships, and investment-led growth that delivers measurable benefits to the people of West Africa.
Dr. Yumkella’s appointment underscores President Bio’s bold and pragmatic regional leadership in his capacity as Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, with a renewed focus on translating political cooperation into tangible economic outcomes. The Special Envoy’s mandate is centered on catalyzing private-sector-led investments to accelerate regional economic integration, particularly in sustainable and clean energy, mineral beneficiation, agribusiness value chains, and digital transformation—key sectors critical to expanding e-commerce and cross-border trade across West Africa.
