Special Report
By Chukwudi George Ozalla
The founding partner of Nextier, Patrick O. Okigbo III, has challenged Nigerians to move beyond identifying the country’s development problems and concentrate on practical solutions that can create jobs, expand businesses and improve the living conditions of citizens.
The challenge framed the development conversation at the 2026 Nextier Development Festival, DevFest, which opened on Tuesday at the African First Ladies Peace Mission House, Abuja, with the participation of the European Union and other development institutions.
The two-day festival, holding from October 13 to 14, is themed “Achieving Inclusive Prosperity in Nigeria: Structural Transformation for Sustained Poverty Reduction.”
One will easily observe that the organisers paid great attention to detail in putting the event together. The serene environment of the African First Ladies Peace Mission House, the clean surroundings and the well-furnished auditorium provided a comfortable setting for the festival. The organisers were also time-conscious and prompt in conducting the proceedings, reflecting careful planning and respect for participants.
The opening day featured panel sessions, questions and responses from participants, as well as breakout discussions that allowed attendees to examine development challenges and consider possible solutions. Policymakers, researchers, business leaders, development practitioners and representatives of international institutions took part in the discussions.
The conversations focused on how Nigeria can create the conditions for inclusive prosperity, with particular attention to the obstacles confronting businesses and the sectors capable of generating employment and improving household incomes.
Participants examined challenges such as access to finance, unreliable power supply, inadequate infrastructure and limited market access, which continue to constrain businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises. The discussions also considered the need to strengthen agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing and digital services as part of a broader effort to expand productive activity and create sustainable jobs.
The festival’s central concern is how Nigeria can move from identifying its economic and social problems to implementing policies that deliver measurable improvements in the lives of citizens. This requires more than announcing reforms; it also calls for effective institutions, reliable evidence, sound planning and the capacity to carry policies through to results.
Public-sector performance and the role of evidence in decision-making featured among the issues considered, alongside natural-resource management, reforms at the subnational level and the need to improve the competitiveness of Nigerian businesses. Discussions also touched on youth participation in development and the opportunities available to Nigerian enterprises under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The emphasis on structural transformation reflects the need to build a productive economy capable of generating opportunities across different sectors and regions, rather than relying on growth that leaves large sections of the population struggling with poverty and limited access to economic opportunities.
Learning Labs formed part of the festival’s programme, providing opportunities for participants to engage with development ideas, practical approaches and lessons from different interventions. Organisations associated with the festival’s development conversations include Innovations for Poverty Action, the German development agency GIZ, the Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria programme, the World Bank and United Nations agencies.
The wider institutional network associated with DevFest also includes the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, the Centre for the Study of the Economies of Africa, Open Society Foundations, Growth Teams, and the Conference of Speakers and Presidents of African Legislatures.
The festival is scheduled to climax on Wednesday with DevDebates, featuring students from Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria, and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
The students are expected to debate the proposition, “Democracy Has Failed Africa’s Development Agenda,” bringing young people into a discussion about the relationship between governance, democracy and the continent’s economic and social progress.
