By Gboyega Olorunfemi
Nigeria’s ambition to become Africa’s leading green industrial economy will remain largely unrealised unless its long-standing partnership with the European Union (EU) moves beyond investment announcements to practical implementation, according to climate and development experts.
The call comes in the wake of the 10th Nigeria–EU Business Forum held in Lagos, where policymakers, investors and business leaders from Nigeria and Europe examined strategies for strengthening economic cooperation, accelerating green industrialisation and attracting sustainable investments capable of driving manufacturing, technology transfer and job creation.
For decades, Nigeria and the European Union have maintained one of Africa’s most significant economic partnerships, evolving from traditional development assistance into broader cooperation covering trade, governance reforms, climate action and infrastructure development. Despite this relationship, Nigeria continues to export largely raw materials while importing high-value manufactured products, a trade pattern analysts say has limited the country’s industrial growth.
Against the backdrop of Africa’s growing interest in green industrialisation, experts believe Nigeria has an opportunity to reposition itself as a major manufacturing hub by leveraging renewable energy, clean technology and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
According to Senior Research Associate at the Centre for Climate Change and Development, Gboyega Olorunfemi, the major obstacle facing Nigeria is no longer the absence of policy direction but the inability to effectively implement existing plans.
He noted that while Nigeria is advancing its Energy Transition Plan, expanding renewable energy investments and developing a Green Industrial Growth Strategy, these initiatives require stronger institutional frameworks and sustained international partnerships to achieve measurable results.
The researcher observed that the European Union’s recent commitment of more than €560 million, announced between the 8th EU-Nigeria Ministerial Meeting in March and the Nigeria-EU Business Forum in June, demonstrates increasing European confidence in Nigeria’s economic potential, particularly in digital infrastructure, green enterprise development and climate-resilient projects such as the Lagos Omi Eko Project.
However, he argued that the next phase of cooperation should concentrate less on announcing investment opportunities and more on establishing practical mechanisms capable of translating financial commitments into industrial development.
Among the recommendations presented was the negotiation of a Clean Trade and Investment Partnership (CTIP) between Nigeria and the European Union.
According to Olorunfemi, following the EU’s first Clean Trade and Investment Partnership with South Africa, Nigeria should become the second African country to benefit from such an arrangement through the EU’s strategic Trade and Investment Dialogue and the Global Gateway initiative.
He explained that such a partnership could prioritise renewable energy technologies, battery manufacturing, electric mobility, sustainable fuels, transmission infrastructure, agro-processing, circular economy industries and low-carbon manufacturing while providing a coordinated implementation framework rather than fragmented development interventions.
The researcher also proposed the establishment of a Green Industrial Compact, modelled after Africa’s National Energy Compacts under the Mission 300 initiative.
He said the framework would clearly identify investment priorities, infrastructure needs, financing requirements, policy reforms and implementation targets, thereby improving transparency, strengthening investor confidence and aligning both public and private sector investments around a common national development agenda.
Another critical recommendation focused on expanding market access through long-term purchasing agreements rather than relying solely on investment promotion.
According to him, one of the biggest challenges confronting green industrialisation is the absence of predictable demand for environmentally sustainable products.
He suggested that Europe could support Nigeria by entering long-term offtake arrangements for products such as battery components, green fertilisers, processed agricultural products, renewable energy equipment, sustainable aviation fuels and other low-carbon industrial goods.
The paper further highlighted electricity infrastructure as another major constraint to Nigeria’s industrial competitiveness.
To address this challenge, Olorunfemi recommended the creation of a Green Grid Partnership between Nigeria and the European Union to finance, manufacture and deploy transmission infrastructure, transformers, energy storage systems and modern grid technologies capable of supporting industrial expansion.
He also called for closer collaboration on emerging European industrial policies, including the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), stressing that Nigeria should not seek exemptions but rather pursue partnerships that encourage industrial decarbonisation, technology transfer, local value addition and improved market access for Nigerian manufacturers.
According to him, the true measure of the Nigeria-EU partnership over the next decade will not be the volume of investment pledges announced at conferences but the number of factories established, technologies transferred, skilled workers trained and sustainable jobs created across the country.
Olorunfemi is a Senior Research Associate at the Centre for Climate Change and Development, co-coordinator of the Africa–Europe Platform for Sustainable Development Thinkers (Ukȧmȧ), and co-author of Green Industrialization Priorities in Africa and Partnership Opportunities with Europe.
