French–Nigerian business cooperation is gathering renewed momentum, with companies from both countries expanding their interests across finance, technology, agriculture, and the creative sectors. This growing engagement was underscored at the 2025 French Week business forum in Lagos, where officials and industry leaders highlighted the need for partnerships that translate dialogue into tangible results.
At the event organised by the Franco-Nigeria Chamber of Commerce and Industry, France’s Consul General in Lagos, Laurent Favier, emphasized that both sides are moving into a more implementation-driven phase of their relationship. He pointed to the importance of collaboration across energy, agriculture, technology, finance, and services—areas he described as essential to building resilient value chains. Favier encouraged the forum’s participants to prioritise initiatives capable of delivering measurable outcomes in the near term.
As part of the deepening economic links, he noted that Nigeria’s major banks—Access Bank, Zenith Bank, UBA, and First Bank of Nigeria—now maintain operations in Paris. Their presence, he said, is already smoothing cross-border transactions and supporting project financing, signalling a maturing financial bridge between the two countries.
Interest in agriculture, tech innovation, and the creative industries is also rising among French and Nigerian firms, according to Favier, who described this as an indicator of a broadening bilateral commercial landscape. He added that preparations are progressing for a ministerial mission to Nigeria in 2026, with a sizeable delegation expected to identify viable collaborative projects and further solidify economic ties.
Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, used the forum to spotlight Lagos as a strategic economic centre. She referenced the state’s GDP—estimated at roughly $259 billion and accounting for more than 30% of Nigeria’s national economy—as evidence of its capacity to host significant foreign investment. Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos provides an enabling environment for collaboration, especially with its community of startups working across fintech, artificial intelligence, digital agriculture, and health technology.
According to her, the city’s youthful, innovation-driven ecosystem positions it as a prime location for French companies seeking to co-develop solutions with African partners.
Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, President of the France-Nigeria Business Council, added that the council—created in 2019—is playing a pivotal role in shifting bilateral engagement “beyond diplomacy.” He highlighted ongoing partnerships spanning energy, infrastructure, finance, and culture. Among them is the Agora project, a joint platform dedicated to advancing urban sustainability through collaborative design and investment.
Together, these initiatives reflect a strengthening commercial relationship, one shaped increasingly by private-sector leadership and a shared interest in developing long-term, mutually beneficial ventures.