The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has urged French businesses to seize new investment opportunities emerging from Nigeria’s sweeping economic reforms.

Addressing the Nigeria Business Forum in Paris on Thursday, Idris said the country is undergoing a transformation aimed at fostering private-sector growth and deepening ties with international partners, particularly France.

The forum, hosted by Business France, brought together representatives of over 200 French companies, including long-time investors in Nigeria such as TotalEnergies, Lafarge, Peugeot, Danone, and Schneider Electric.

Idris, in a statement signed by his media aide, Rabiu Ibrahim, commended these firms for their continued presence and investment in Nigeria’s energy, infrastructure, healthcare, manufacturing, and agricultural sectors.

Under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, Idris said Nigeria is undergoing an “unprecedented journey of reform,” driven by the Renewed Hope Agenda — an eight-point strategic plan aimed at unlocking the nation’s vast economic potential.

These include the unification of the foreign exchange system, removal of fuel subsidies, cost-reflective electricity tariffs, and comprehensive tax and trade reforms.

“These historic reforms are building a more competitive, transparent, and investor-friendly economy, positioning Nigeria as the gateway to Africa’s booming consumer market under the African Continental Free Trade Area,” he said.

The minister also highlighted new digital and immigration policies designed to ease the movement of people and goods.

He emphasised the country’s investment appeal, noting it is Africa’s largest economy with a population exceeding 220 million—over 70 per cent of whom are under 35.

He also pointed to the country’s stable democratic governance, strong regulatory institutions, and improving fiscal health. In the first quarter of 2024, Nigeria recorded 3.84 per cent GDP growth and a more than 20 per cent increase in government revenue, according to Idris.

The minister cited several government-led initiatives aimed at encouraging private investment, including the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund, the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation, and the MOFI Real Estate Investment Fund.

“These initiatives are laying the foundation for leveraging trillions of naira in private sector investments across infrastructure, consumer credit, healthcare, real estate, and beyond.”

Idris also pointed to the expansion of Nigerian banks into Europe, including new offices in Paris, as a sign of increasing economic engagement between Nigeria and France.

He encouraged French companies to consider Nigeria’s livestock and dairy sectors as areas of untapped potential, particularly in light of the recent establishment of a dedicated Ministry for Livestock Development.

In addition to the business forum, the minister is scheduled to meet with French media and cultural institutions to explore further partnerships in broadcasting and creative industries.

Buba Galadima, a chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), says President Bola Tinubu helped his daughter secure a job at the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).

Galadima, a stalwart in the Kwankwasiyya movement, made the revelation on Wednesday during an appearance on Jigsaw, a programme on AIT.

The NNPP chieftain said despite his constant criticism of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) government, he remains friends with Tinubu.

“We are friends and will continue to be friends. If I want anything from him, I can ask,” he said.

“Let me confess on national television. My daughter used my phone to call the President and the President picked up the call thinking it was me. And they said they are my children and that they are calling him because the country is hard.

“They told Tinubu that ‘our father cannot do this for us and he told us that you are his friend’. The little one said she just finished the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), she could not get a job with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) headed by Gbenga Komolafe.

“He (Tinubu) just asked, ‘call Komolafe, go and give my friend’s daughter a job’. That is why she wants to go to Mecca to thank God and to thank even Mr President.”

Galadima claimed that one of his daughters worked for former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for four years without pay.

“My daughter worked for him for four years and he instructed that she should not be paid a salary,” he said.

“Let them bring any voucher where she was paid. She worked for Buhari for four years in Osinbajo’s office without payment.”

The NNPP chieftain claimed that despite their longstanding friendship, he had turned down an offer from Tinubu to work in his government.

A Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out a N50 billion rights violation suit filed by Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), against the Federal Government.

Justice Inyang Ekwo dismissed the case on Thursday for lack of diligent prosecution after neither Kanu nor the government was represented in court. The judge noted repeated adjournments due to absence of Kanu’s legal team.

Kanu had sought compensation over his alleged abduction from Kenya and forced return to Nigeria, arguing it violated international and local extradition laws. He also asked for his release from DSS custody and a halt to further prosecution.

The Federal Government opposed the suit, citing a similar case already filed in Umuahia, calling it an abuse of court process.