Africa’s trade map is being redrawn, and Nigeria is sitting right at the center of it.
What was once a relationship shaped largely by history and diplomacy is now being rewritten by capital, investment, and corporate ambition.
For decades, France’s economic playbook in Africa ran mainly through its former colonies. That pattern is changing fast.
In 2025, bilateral trade between Nigeria and France reached $4.7 billion, making Nigeria the top destination for French investment in sub-Saharan Africa, despite having no colonial ties to Paris.
A new business axis
That shift took center stage on May 12, 2026, when the 10th France-Nigeria Business Council met on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi.
The summit mattered not just for the deals discussed, but for where it was held: for the first time, the long-running Africa-France forum took place in an English-speaking African country.
The message was clear. This was no longer a conversation about legacy influence alone. It was about execution, commercial value, and where French and Nigerian business interests now meet in practical terms.
Banking leads the way
The most visible proof of the shift is in banking. Access Bank opened its Paris branch in May 2023, while Zenith Bank commissioned its own Paris office in November 2024. UBA is also pushing toward full commercial banking operations in France, with Tony Elumelu describing it as a natural next step for a bank already established in the UK and the US.
That matters because banking is often the first sign of a deeper economic relationship. When financial institutions begin building on-the-ground presence, trade links tend to follow with more structure, trust, and long-term planning.
Energy and industry follow
Energy is carrying similar weight. TotalEnergies and NNPC reached a final investment decision on the Ubeta gas field, a project tied to Nigeria LNG’s Train 7 expansion. BUA Group has also partnered with French engineering firm Axens on a 200,000-barrel-a-day refinery project in Akwa Ibom, adding another layer to the commercial relationship.
Then there is Dangote Refinery, which has become one of Europe’s key jet fuel suppliers, with France among its regular buyers. That is an important detail because it shows the relationship is not one-directional; Nigerian firms are not only receiving French capital, they are also serving French market demand.
Hospitality enters the frame
The latest high-profile deal sits in hospitality. Under the chairmanship of Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, the council backed a signed pact between Accor and Nigeria’s Shoreline Group to build 10 luxury hotels across the country by 2030, with more than 1,000 rooms planned in total.
This is where the relationship broadens beyond oil and banking. Hospitality deals suggest a longer view of Nigeria as a consumer market, a travel destination, and a place where service-sector growth can be scaled.
The council is widening
The France-Nigeria Business Council was inaugurated by French President Emmanuel Macron in June 2021, and its membership reads like a directory of Nigerian corporate power: Aliko Dangote, Abdul Samad Rabiu, Tony Elumelu, Jim Ovia, and Mike Adenuga. But newer voices are also shaping the agenda.
Flutterwave founder Gbenga Agboola represents the digital economy, while Olawale Rotimi Opeyemi of JR Farms is pushing agribusiness through premium coffee exports and a first-ever France-Nigeria Agri-Summit in Lagos.
French Ambassador Marc Fonbaustier has said the relationship’s future will be written not only in boardrooms, but also in labs, classrooms, and startups.
What happens after Macron
The political backdrop will matter too.
Emmanuel Macron’s final term ends in May 2027, meaning his successor will inherit a framework he did not build. Nigeria has also moved to strengthen its diplomatic side, confirming Ayodele Oke as Ambassador to France in April 2026 after a three-year vacancy
Still, the deeper story is commercial, not ceremonial.
If the trade flows, banking expansion, gas projects, and infrastructure deals continue to deliver value, the Nigeria-France partnership may prove far more durable than the politics around it. Source ThisDay Live
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