Chief Executive Officer of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), Samantha Cohen, has noted that manufacturing remains the key to unlocking economic prosperity.

She said creating more manufacturing facilities on the continent, and in Nigeria, is really important because the cost of living for local people becomes so much more expensive when they must rely on imported goods.

Speaking with The Guardian during a recent visit to Nigeria, she revealed that she met with the Governor of Lagos State and the state’s commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, over a major trade event that will take place between June 9 -10, 2026. She added that the International Financial Centre would be launched here as well, which she said would greatly reposition Lagos’ economy.

“Lagos economy is the fourth largest in Africa and I dare to say that this event will give the state a needed international platform as there will be a large delegation of investors from across other countries in the Commonwealth. The president would also be visiting the United Kingdom from the 14th to the 15th of March 2026. We are hoping to feed into that event as well and to bring Lagos to the table because the state is one of our 25 strategic partners,” she said.

Cohen also said that the CWEIC, through its network, is facilitating the establishment of manufacturing firms in Nigeria. “One of our strategic partners, the Russel Smith Group, is pioneering additive manufacturing in Nigeria and building one of the biggest additive manufacturing factories in the world in Lagos. They are partnering with an Australian tech company in doing this, which is a fantastic example of Commonwealth collaboration as well.”

She explained that the reason for building the additive manufacturing factory in Nigeria is the abundance of raw materials.
She added that her organisation’s role in enabling Nigeria to realise its $1 trillion economy aspiration by 2030 is to provide a strong and credible platform to educate investors about the opportunities in Nigeria.

“We will be having a big conference in London, between April 20 -21, 2026, which is the Commonwealth Trade Investment Summit. Hopefully, the government of Lagos State will attend to promote the state to an international audience. We are providing an opportunity, as well as partners across the Commonwealth, for the Lagos story to be told, to let everybody know what’s happening here, the dynamism, innovation and opportunities.

She pointed out that CWEIC’s relationship with the Enugu State Government continues to thrive and they continually promote the growth of Nigerian MSMEs by linking them with businesses within the council’s network.

She also said that the CWEIC is bringing more trade missions to Nigeria so that businesses can learn about the market and find the right local partner.

She observed that there is a completely new geopolitical landscape in which Nigeria is front and center of Africa’s big economic shift and interest is growing significantly. She added that the population growth in Nigeria means that it is a huge market and countries are looking for new markets of scale because of recent and ongoing geopolitical shifts.