As Nigeria prepares for the 2027 general elections, former President Goodluck Jonathan has urged political leaders to look beyond immediate political gains and adopt policies that will secure a better future for generations yet unborn.

Jonathan, who spoke in Lagos on Monday at the 13th Anniversary Memorial Lecture in honour of the late former Ondo State Governor, Dr Olusegun Agagu, said leaders elected into office must use their positions to plan for the long-term prosperity of the country.

He said political leaders, particularly governors and presidents, should not focus only on the needs of the present generation, but must consider the impact of their policies on future generations.

“Anybody who is lucky to be a governor or a president of the country is lucky to plan for our grandchildren. When you plan for us who are already waiting to go, the country will continue to be unbearable,” Jonathan said.

The former president called for sustainable policies capable of transforming Nigeria’s economic fortunes, stressing that the country needed policies that would change its economic atmosphere rather than provide only temporary gains.

Jonathan also advocated a shift from the export of raw materials to value addition, saying Africa’s abundant natural resources had failed to translate into corresponding prosperity because much of the processing and manufacturing took place outside the continent.

“The challenge before us is to change the pattern to move from extraction to value addition, from dependence to productive capacity, and from resource wealth to growth-based prosperity for every citizen of the country,” he said.

According to him, African countries must ensure that their natural resources generate industries, create jobs, enhance technology and expand opportunities, particularly for the continent’s young population.

Using the cocoa industry as an example, Jonathan said West Africa accounted for about 30 per cent of global cocoa production, yet most high-value economic activities associated with the commodity, including processing and chocolate manufacturing, took place outside Africa.

He cited an illustration from the Ghana Cocoa Board that one kilogramme of cocoa beans could cost about $5, while processing the commodity into chocolate and other finished products could raise its value to between $12 and $18.

Jonathan said cocoa farmers received only a fraction of the value generated from the commodity, arguing that the continent’s focus should therefore go beyond increasing production.

“The lesson is clear. The real opportunity is not simply in producing more cocoa. You can continue to encourage the farmers to produce more cocoa, but in the end, you can get 6.6 per cent. It’s in capturing more of the value created from the cocoa,” he said.

He said retaining more of the value generated from Africa’s natural resources would create businesses, skilled jobs, technological opportunities, tax revenues and entrepreneurial opportunities.

Jonathan said the principle should also apply to commodities and natural resources including cotton, coffee, crude oil, gold, diamonds, lithium and uranium.

“Africa must move beyond the model in which we export the raw material and import the finished product,” he said.

The former president described Africa’s position as the world’s resource-rich continent but its poor performance in value addition as “pathetic”, calling for urgent change.

“Africa is number one. But in terms of value addition, we are the last. This is pathetic, and we must change,” he said.

Jonathan also said the life and career of Agagu provided an appropriate basis for examining the challenges facing Nigeria and Africa, noting his commitment to knowledge and responsible public policy.

He commended the Olusegun Agagu Foundation for sustaining the memorial lecture and keeping alive the values and ideals of the late governor.

The former president said the memory of Agagu should continue to inspire efforts to build a Nigeria and Africa founded on good governance, productive economic policies, inclusive prosperity and a shared sense of destiny.