The African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) yesterday in Abeokuta honoured former President Olusegun Obasanjo with its 20th Anniversary Special Recognition Award, as the former President called on Africa to mobilise domestic and international capital to finance its development and strengthen energy security.

ARDA President and Managing Director of Société Multinationale de Bitumes in Côte d’Ivoire, Marie-Josephine Sidibe, while presenting the award, described Obasanjo as a statesman whose lifetime of leadership had consistently advanced the ideals of African unity, economic transformation, good governance and self-reliance.

Sidibe, who led the ARDA delegation, including Vice President, Evans Mauta; Executive Secretary Anibor Kragha, President Emeritus Joel Dervain, Sahara Group Executive Director Tope Shonubi, Ardova Plc Group Executive Chairman Abdulwasiu Sowami and other industry stakeholders, said the honour recognised not only Obasanjo’s address during ARDA’s 20th anniversary celebration but also his enduring contribution to Africa’s development.

She noted that ARDA’s mission of strengthening Africa’s downstream oil and gas sector through collaboration, investment, innovation and knowledge sharing aligns with Obasanjo’s long-standing advocacy for Africa to develop its own resources, build its own industries and create prosperity for its people.

According to her, the commemorative award, crafted from African wood and shaped in the outline of the continent, symbolises resilience, unity and the vision of an Africa capable of refining its own resources, powering its own economies and shaping its own destiny.

Responding after receiving the award, Obasanjo urged African leaders to rethink the continent’s development financing model, saying that declining global development assistance requires Africa to rely more on its own resources.

“The future of Africa lies in Africa itself. We must build a new financial architecture that enables the continent to mobilise resources, attract investment and finance its own development, drawing on both domestic and international capital while ensuring that greater value is created and retained within Africa,” he said.

According to him, sustainable development will depend on Africa’s ability to generate and retain wealth rather than relying primarily on foreign aid.

Obasanjo also commended the transformation of AP, now Ardova Plc., describing it as proof that African companies can achieve global standards through deliberate planning, innovation and persistence.

The former President’s remarks echoed the message he delivered during ARDA’s 20th anniversary celebrations, where he described energy security as the foundation of Africa’s industrialisation.

He had said that no nation could power industries, build infrastructure or modernise agriculture without reliable and affordable energy supplies, stressing that industrialisation without energy security rests on a fragile foundation.

Obasanjo also urged African governments to pursue African-led solutions to the continent’s energy challenges by strengthening refineries, expanding distribution networks and building integrated logistics systems under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).