News
Countdown Begins as Nigeria Hosts 2nd Africa Raw Materials Summit October 19–20
Joel Ajayi
The countdown has begun to the 2nd Africa Raw Materials Summit (ARMS 2026), with Nigeria set to host policymakers, investors, researchers, manufacturers, technology providers and other key stakeholders from across Africa and beyond from October 19 to 20, 2026.
The two-day summit, organised by the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), will take place at the Abuja Continental Hotel under the theme, “From African Feedstock to African Factories.”
The summit is expected to place Nigeria at the centre of discussions on Africa’s industrial transformation, with stakeholders expected to examine how the continent can move from exporting raw materials to developing industries that process, manufacture and add value to its own resources.
The event will provide a platform for policymakers, investors, researchers, manufacturers and technology providers to explore investment opportunities, develop partnerships and advance practical strategies for converting Africa’s abundant raw materials into finished and semi-finished products within the continent.
The programme will feature High-Level Plenary Addresses and Policy Dialogues, Sub-Thematic Interactive Panels, the Pan-African Advanced Raw Materials and Technology Exhibition, Industrial Site Visits, and the African Raw Materials Industry Awards.
Discussions at the summit will focus on five major pillars critical to Africa’s industrial development.
The first, Logistics and Infrastructure, will address the “Missing Middle” in logistics and infrastructure, with emphasis on improving the movement, processing and distribution of raw materials.
The second, the 30 per cent Value-Addition Mandate, will examine measures to promote domestic processing and ensure that more African raw materials are transformed into higher-value products before export.
The third pillar, Circular Economy and Waste Industrialisation, will focus on converting waste into economic opportunities through sustainable production, recycling, recovery and industrial reuse.
The fourth, AfCFTA Regional Value Chain Integration, will explore ways of strengthening regional cooperation and developing interconnected value chains across African countries under the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The fifth pillar, Technology Commercialisation and Capital Linkage, will focus on connecting innovative technologies with investors and capital providers to accelerate commercialisation, manufacturing and industrial growth.
Speaking ahead of the summit, the RMRDC Director-General and Chief Executive Officer, Prof. Nnanyelugo M. Ike-Muonso, said ARMS 2026 would provide an opportunity to align policy, capital, technology and political will towards ensuring that resources extracted from African soil are increasingly transformed within the continent.
According to him, Africa is at a point where it must reduce its dependence on the traditional model of exporting raw commodities and importing finished products.
He said the continent possesses enormous reserves of minerals, agricultural resources and industrial feedstock, yet much of its raw wealth continues to leave Africa with limited value added.
“Nigeria alone has over $582.4 billion in documented non-renewable natural resources, highlighting the enormous economic opportunity available through increased local processing, manufacturing and industrial development,” he said.
Ike-Muonso said the summit was designed to bring together key players across the raw materials value chain to develop practical strategies for transforming African resources into finished and semi-finished products within the continent.
He added that the proposed 30 per cent mandatory value-addition framework would be a major focus of discussions, as it seeks to encourage domestic processing of Nigerian raw materials before export.
According to the RMRDC, the initiative is projected to generate more than 1.2 million skilled jobs within five years, while supporting import substitution and strengthening Nigeria’s manufacturing sector.
The 2026 edition is expected to attract more than 1,800 delegates from 54 African countries, alongside global industrial partners and other stakeholders.
Giving an update on the Council’s preparedness, the Director of Corporate Affairs, RMRDC, Chinyere Nnamdi-Anum, said the Council was fully prepared to host the summit.
She said the gathering would bring together industrialists, researchers, investors, government representatives and other stakeholders to develop practical solutions for increasing value addition to Africa’s raw materials.
With registration officially open, the countdown to ARMS 2026 is now underway, offering Nigerian and African businesses, investors, researchers and policymakers an opportunity to participate in discussions that could shape the continent’s industrial future.
As Abuja prepares to welcome participants from across Africa and beyond, the summit is expected to strengthen the push for a new industrial model in which Africa’s resources provide the foundation for African factories, African jobs, African investments and sustainable industrial growth.
News
RMAFC Chairman Charges Directors, HODs on Accountability, Productivity
Joel Ajayi
The Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Dr. Mohammed Bello Shehu, OFR, has charged Directors and Heads of Departments (HODs) to demonstrate commitment, accountability and professionalism in the discharge of their duties to ensure the successful implementation of the Performance Management System (PMS) in the Commission.
In a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja by Head, Information and Public Relations Unit Maryam Umar Yusuf, mnipr stated that, Chairman gave the charge at the signing of Performance Contracts by Directors and Heads of Departments at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
He described the exercise as more than the signing of official documents, noting that it represented a covenant of accountability and a commitment to delivering on the Commission’s strategic objectives through improved productivity and measurable results. He also noted that the initiative aligned with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, which prioritises institutional efficiency, good governance and improved service delivery.
Dr. Shehu explained that the PMS represents a deliberate shift from routine administrative activities to a result-oriented system that measures institutional and individual performance against clearly defined objectives.
He noted that the Commission had recorded significant progress towards its implementation through the development of a dedicated IT platform, organisation-wide staff training, capacity building for PMS champions, management sensitisation sessions and change management initiatives.
He emphasised that the system was not designed to be punitive but to empower officers, clarify responsibilities, identify capacity gaps and promote fairness in performance assessment. He therefore urged Directors and HODs to ensure that departmental targets and key performance indicators were realistic, measurable, time-bound and aligned with the Commission’s strategic objectives.
He assured staff of management’s commitment to providing the necessary support and enabling environment, while urging all officers to embrace the initiative and make accountability, professionalism and improved service delivery their guiding principles.
Also speaking, the Chairman of the Personnel Matters Committee (PMC) and Federal Commissioner representing Cross River State, Ntufam Eyo-Nsa Whitley, described staff as the driving force behind the success of the Commission, urging them to demonstrate discipline, diligence, emotional intelligence and dedication to their responsibilities.
He encouraged officers to take the performance management exercise seriously and give their best towards achieving the Commission’s objectives.
He further urged staff to support one another, embrace the reform process and avoid attitudes that could undermine teamwork and institutional progress. Hon Ntufam called on the PMS champions to demonstrate commitment and provide guidance to their colleagues, stressing that collective responsibility, discipline and effective implementation would ensure the success of the initiative.
In his welcome address, the Secretary to the Commission, Comrade Tosin Adeyanju, described the signing ceremony as a significant milestone in the Commission’s history, marking the transition from intention to action, planning to execution, and traditional performance evaluation to a modern, data-driven performance management system.
He appreciated the Chairman’s leadership and the Commissioners’ support, while acknowledging the critical roles of Directors and HODs in driving the transformation.
He urged management staff to take ownership of their performance agreements and ensure regular engagement, feedback and monitoring to achieve the desired results.
He stressed that the success of the PMS would depend not merely on signing the contracts but on the Commission’s ability to translate agreed targets into improved productivity, efficiency and measurable institutional achievements.
Earlier, the Director overseeing the Administration and Human Resource Department, Alhaji Ahmed Rufai Gidado, explained that the Commission had undertaken a series of activities towards the implementation of the Performance Management System and that the signing of the performance contracts represented a major milestone in the process, marking the transition from preparatory activities to the implementation phase.
In his lecture on The Role of Performance Management in Public Sector Transformation, Mr. Nwachukwu John, Head of Economy Team Performance Management at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF), commended RMAFC for the progress recorded in adopting the PMS framework. He noted that the Commission’s commitment demonstrated its readiness to embrace public service reforms and align individual responsibilities with institutional and national development objectives.
He explained that the PMS was designed to connect the responsibilities of individual officers with departmental targets, the Commission’s strategic plan and the Federal Government’s priorities. He urged Directors and HODs to ensure that performance contracts were cascaded to other levels of staff through regular engagement and feedback, emphasising that the system was a productivity tool rather than a promotion exercise.
Similarly, Mr. Ohiro Emmanuel, PMS Consultant with Reliefline Nigeria Limited, delivered a lecture on Overview of the PMS Implementation Journey, during which he described the signing of performance contracts by Directors as a major milestone in the implementation process. He explained that the Commission had conducted staff training, developed a dedicated PMS IT platform and trained performance management champions to facilitate the process.
He stated that the next phase would involve cascading the performance contracts across departments, with Directors engaging their Deputy Directors and Assistant Directors, who would subsequently work with other officers to ensure that individual responsibilities were aligned with departmental targets. He urged the Commission to sustain the momentum and proceed with the cascading process to achieve full implementation of the system.
In his closing remarks, the Director of Reliefline Nigeria Limited, Mr. Francis Ikuyinminu, expressed appreciation to the leadership of RMAFC for their commitment and collaboration towards the successful development of the PMS.
He also acknowledged the support of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and other partners, reaffirming his company’s commitment to providing technical advisory support, capacity building and change management to ensure effective implementation of the system. He urged all stakeholders to sustain their partnership and commitment towards building a legacy of excellence
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