UNGA 2026: Elumelu seeks stronger US-Africa trade ties

NEW YORK — Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu, has called for a fundamental shift in Africa’s development model from dependence on foreign aid to trade, investment, entrepreneurship and private sector-led growth.

Elumelu made the call during a fireside chat on the sidelines of the 2026 United Nations General Assembly, UNGA, in New York.

The session, titled the “Darryl G. Behrman Lecture on Africa Policy,” was moderated by Michael Froman, President of the Council on Foreign Relations, CFR.

It focused on Africa’s evolving role in the global economy, entrepreneurship, energy security, private sector development and the future of US-Africa relations.

Elumelu said Africans must increasingly take ownership of the continent’s economic transformation, while global investors and international policy partners should move beyond outdated perceptions of Africa as an aid-dependent continent.

He urged them to view Africa as a commercial investment destination with opportunities for high returns through private-sector partnerships.

The businessman also challenged international investors to bridge the gap between perceived risks and operational realities in African markets.

According to him, viewing Africa as a single high-risk market overlooks the economic diversity and opportunities across its 54 countries.

He said global capital seeking growth could find significant opportunities on the continent when foreign investors form strategic co-investment partnerships with credible local business leaders who understand the operating environment.

Elumelu reaffirmed his economic philosophy of Africapitalism, which advocates private sector-led development and the use of business to drive Africa’s economic transformation.

He said while aid programmes could provide short-term relief, they could not build sustainable industries or replace the structural impact of domestic capital deployment.

He called on foreign venture capital firms, pension funds and development finance institutions to partner with local financial institutions to fund critical infrastructure and power key trade corridors.

On Africa’s youthful population, Elumelu described young entrepreneurs as critical to the continent’s economic development, security and global stability.

He said tackling youth unemployment was essential to reducing irregular migration and preventing social instability.

Drawing on the work of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, which has committed $100 million to empower young African entrepreneurs, he said providing $5,000 in non-refundable seed capital alongside business training could stimulate job creation in rural and urban communities.

He urged international philanthropies, multilateral agencies and corporations to support the expansion of youth-led micro, small and medium enterprises across Africa.

On energy security and climate policy, Elumelu called for a pragmatic and equitable approach to the global energy transition.

He noted that more than 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity, arguing that industrialisation and digital transformation would remain difficult without reliable power.

Elumelu advocated the use of Africa’s abundant natural gas resources as a transition fuel to power industries and stabilise electricity grids, while investments in renewable energy infrastructure continue.

On US-Africa trade relations, he said future partnerships should move beyond traditional concessionary frameworks.

While supporting the African Growth and Opportunity Act, AGOA, Elumelu said greater attention should be paid to the cost of producing and delivering African goods to US markets.

He also called for bilateral trade arrangements to support supply-chain integration, domestic manufacturing and the removal of regulatory bottlenecks hindering intra-African trade as the African Continental Free Trade Area gains momentum.

Elumelu said stronger economic prosperity in Africa was ultimately in the interest of the global community, stressing that poverty anywhere could undermine economic peace and security everywhere.