By Jennete Ugo Anya
Governor Abdullahi Sule has formally launched the 2026 Nasarawa Investment Summit, setting the stage for what is expected to be a defining edition aimed at consolidating investment gains and assuring continuity beyond the 2027 political transition.
The summit, scheduled for May 6 to May 7, 2026, in Lafia, comes against the backdrop of seven years of reforms focused on improving the state’s investment climate and strengthening institutional frameworks. Speaking recently at the unveiling, Sule said the theme, “Bold Transitions: Building a Legacy for Sustainable Futures,” reflects a deliberate effort to shift the state’s economic trajectory from personality-driven governance to systems anchored on policy and institutional stability.
He pointed to reforms in land administration, ease of doing business, and private sector engagement across agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and infrastructure as key drivers that have elevated Nasarawa into the top tier of Nigeria’s most competitive states, according to World Bank rankings.
The governor framed the 2026 edition as both a showcase and a signal, describing it as the final summit under his administration and a platform to reassure investors that the state’s economic direction will remain intact after his exit.
“We want investors to know that what we have built is not going to disappear after we leave. The institutions will remain. The policies will remain. That is the message of this summit,” Sule said.
A central feature of the summit will be the proposed Lafia Declaration, a voluntary pact expected to be signed by political actors, including gubernatorial aspirants and legislators, alongside development partners and investors. The declaration is designed to secure cross-political commitment to sustaining Nasarawa’s economic reforms and investment policies beyond the current administration.
The event will also incorporate a structured deal room to facilitate investment transactions, a Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises competition and showcase, and a policy dialogue centred on the Nasarawa Gas Master Plan, which the government considers critical to long-term industrialisation.
High-level participation is anticipated, with Ghana’s President, John Mahama, invited to deliver the keynote address, while Vice President Kashim Shettima is expected as Special Guest of Honour.
Early indicators suggest strong investor interest, with the governor disclosing that financial commitments are already being mobilised ahead of the summit. He expressed confidence that private sector contributions would surpass public spending, continuing a pattern established in previous editions.
Providing context to the state’s investment trajectory, Managing Director of the Nasarawa State Investment Development Agency, Ibrahim Abdullahi, said the summit has played a central role in attracting capital inflows. Since its inception in 2022, the state has secured a cumulative $2.3 billion in investments.
Between 2022 and 2024, Nasarawa recorded $1.8 billion in investments and $1.3 million in technical assistance. In 2025 alone, the state attracted an additional $1 billion, with $505 million already actualised, underscoring what Abdullahi described as growing investor confidence in the state’s policy consistency.
The 2026 summit is therefore positioned not merely as an investment forum, but as a strategic inflection point, one that seeks to lock in reforms, deepen investor trust, and institutionalise a development pathway that can withstand political change.
