French President Emmanuel Macron received President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a private dinner Thursday night at the Élysée Palace.
According to presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, the meeting reflected the enduring relationship between Nigeria and France and their shared commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation.
In other news, President Tinubu has said that Nigeria has the talent, enterprise, and ambition to build companies that can compete anywhere in the world. He revealed that his government's responsibility is to ensure that Nigerians do not have to leave Nigeria or rely on other jurisdictions to realise that potential.
"For too long, some of our most promising young entrepreneurs have felt compelled to establish their companies and intellectual property abroad to access global capital and markets. I do not accept that this must remain the case.
"I want the next generation of African technology, finance and service companies to be built, headquartered and scaled to the world from Nigerian soil."
He said that in the Renewed Hope Agenda, he promised Nigerians a digital economy that creates opportunities at home and puts our young people at its centre. He said that thinking led him to establish and chair the Presidential Steering Committee on Digital Free Zones.
"I directed the Committee to take our free zone framework, created more than three decades ago for a very different economy, and modernise it for the digital economy we are building today.
"That work is now taking shape.
"Nigeria’s first Digital Free Zone, Itana, is now licensed by the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) and already provides a platform for global and pan-African digital and service businesses to establish and operate in Nigeria.
"Companies are showing interest, and the Africa Finance Corporation is backing the $500 million Itana Innovation project, Lagos, which will bring together the ideal policy environment. This innovation campus will serve as a home for startups to build at scale, access capital, and access the ecosystem services needed to help African startups grow and retain more of the value they create on the continent," he said.
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