Manufacture or Miss Out: Okonjo-Iweala Hits Nigeria With Tough Truths At Davos 2026 -

The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has advised the Nigerian government to deliberately target global investors and supply chain relocations to reduce import dependence, deepen manufacturing, and drive job creation.

She made the remarks on Wednesday at Nigeria House during the ongoing World Economic Forum in Davos.

During a panel discussion titled “From Scale to Capital: Financing Nigeria’s Role as Africa’s Digital Trade and Infrastructure Anchor,” the WTO Chief, Okonjo-Iweala stressed that rising geopolitical tensions, particularly between the United States and China, have accelerated supply chain diversification.

Also present on the panel was the Managing Director of the Bank of Industry, Dr Oludapo Olusi.

“Firms are increasingly adopting China+1 sourcing strategies to reduce single-country risk, although China remains deeply embedded in many global value chains.

“In addition, tariffs and trade restrictions have incentivised companies to reconsider reliance on dominant suppliers, prompting the relocation or diversification of production hubs”, Okonjo-Iweala said.

According to her, these disruptions present an opportunity for Nigeria to capture a share of global supply chains.

Okonjo-Iweala, however, noted that this would require aggressive marketing of the country to prospective investors.

She said, “As you said, some good reforms are being pursued right now. I think they need to yield to job creation. That was what I said to His Excellency—that we need to move from stabilisation to job creation, because that is where we are lacking. It is not going to be overnight, but they are moving in the right direction. What I think they need to do is map where the opportunities are.

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“What I would like to see is a continued effort to attract investment into the country, because there is an opportunity now to attract these supply chains. If there is one thing I would say, it is that everything we can do to showcase Nigeria as a country worthy of investment is what we should be doing.

“And we should deliberately have strategies to go after those investments and investors—to go to China, the US, whatever it takes—to come and invest in our country.”

“As companies seek to diversify supply chains, a lot of that movement is still within Asia. Diversification is moving from China but still within Asia, and India is another destination. We should attract a sizeable chunk of that. I’m not saying all.

“Let’s build solar panels in Nigeria. We are importing, but we can also manufacture. We have the renewable capacity. In fashion, let them come to invest. Every time I buy a piece of wax (textile), I check to see where it’s made. Let’s attract investment to make it at home rather than elsewhere. Many of the shiny new textiles we are wearing now are not made in Nigeria; a lot of them are imported.” Okonjo-Iweala also noted.

She also highlighted opportunities in the pharmaceutical sector, saying, “Pharmaceuticals—there is a chance there as well. These are some of the supply chains I would be attracting.”

Okonjo-Iweala At Davos 2026

At the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2026, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), has focused on global trade dynamics, the need for Africa to add value to its products, and advising Nigeria to prioritize job creation and attract global investments.

The 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (Davos 2026) is currently taking place from January 19 to January 23, 2026, in the Swiss Alpine resort of Davos-Klosters.

The theme for 2026 is “A Spirit of Dialogue,” emphasizing open cooperation to confront a complex geopolitical and technological landscape. The program centers on five global challenges: