American Business Council Nigeria

The American Business Council Nigeria applauds the recent release from the office of the President of Nigeria on responsible use of U.S. visas according to the U.S. legal terms and conditions, urging Nigerian nationals in the United States to return to Nigeria immediately if they are in violation of any U.S. immigration laws, including overstays. According to the CEO, Margaret Olele, "the Council will be sharing different messages about this through our social media platforms, beginning with the fictional AI-supported story of Selia. The American Business Council is the voice of American Businesses in Nigeria and an affiliate of the U.S. Chamber in D.C. Nigeria and the U.S are natural business partners, and we have companies that existed before the independence of Nigeria. We remain committed to supporting, maintaining, and sustaining this relationship”. She added. https://lnkd.in/diZe2qC9

The American Business Council, in collaboration with Deloitte, hosted an Interactive Dialogue focused on Navigating Nigeria’s New Tax Era: Strategic Readiness for 2026 and Beyond on Friday, October 17, 2025, at the Pier Harbour by SRS, Victoria Island, Lagos. The session began with opening remarks from Adebisi A., Africa Head of Sustainability & Strategy and Country Leader, Dow Chemical West and Central Africa, Chair of the Sustainability Committee, and Board Member, who stressed the importance of this dialogue for businesses to strategically align with Nigeria’s evolving tax framework and impending enforcement as they prepare for 2026 and beyond. The keynote presentation was delivered by Mr. Matthew Olusanya Gbojunbola, Coordinating Director, Compliance and Enforcement Group, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), who shared insights on key provisions, implementation pathways, and readiness expectations under the new tax regime. An interactive dialogue followed, moderated by Chijioke Odo, Partner at Deloitte, focusing on the practical implications of the reforms, compliance priorities, and strategies to strengthen collaboration between the private sector and regulators. Several ABC members attended, including representatives from ExxonMobil, Meta Facebook, Touch and Pay Technologies Ltd (YC W22), Flutterwave, Uber, Equinix, EY, Bristol Scientific Company, The Coca-Cola Company, SLB, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, ISN MEDICAL, GE, United Airlines, Verraki Africa (A Member of Andersen Consulting), U-Connect Human Resources Limited, IHS Towers, American Tower Africa, Outcess, among others. "The Council Special appreciates our event sponsors, Dow Chemical, IHS Towers, and Pier Harbour Residences and Spa for their invaluable support in fostering this meaningful conversations that drive clarity, collaboration, and competitiveness in Nigeria’s business landscape." Joy Lawal noted.

It was very busy last week for the Secretariat with key partnerships events in the digital tech space. Sarah Ogbolu-Paul secretary for the ICT Committee, joined the Hyperscalers Convergence 2025, the LinkedIn Local Nigeria and the LIama Impact Accelerator Day event that held on the 7th of October. Key speakers at these events include Taiwo Oyedele (LinkedIn Local Nigeria), the Director General of NITDA Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, (Hyperscalers Convergence 2025) and Bunmi Ajala, PhD, FHEA. (LIama Impact Accelerator) organised by Meta Facebook. Members in attendance include Cisco, as well as our partner Comercio Limited

American Business Council Nigeria and Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), as co-conveners of the Private Sector Development for Democracy Forum, would like to thank members of the Steering Committee, members, and stakeholders for the valuable work done over the years and the eventual production and launch of the National Agenda for Democratic Strengthening(NADS). Project Lead for the PSDF, Joy Lawal, recently visited members and partners as the project embarks on the project's scorecard development, validation, and the next steps. Pictures below with Director General of the Nigeria Governors' Forum, Dr. Abdulateef Shittu, Policy Vault Country Manager Damilola Atiri, Vahyala Kwaga, Group Head Research and Policy Advisory BudgIT Nigeria and the Asst. Secretary-General Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities Dr.Sylverina Olaghere CFPM, MHSN

American Business Council Nigeria (AmCham Nigeria) joined the launch of the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) Africa Hub in Lagos, a continent-wide platform strengthening private-sector leadership and democratic resilience across Africa. As a longstanding CIPE Africa partner, we promote ethical business practices, improve governance, and foster inclusive growth that benefits both American investors and Nigerian enterprises. At the event, Chidozie Arinze, Senior Director and Head of Government Affairs, Western & Central Africa at Visa represented American Business Council Nigeria (AmCham Nigeria) on the panel “Mandates, Markets, and Democracy,” while the American Business Council received recognition from CIPE for advancing impactful, ethical business engagement. Together, we look forward to leveraging the CIPE Africa Hub to drive sustainable investment and strengthen private-sector participation in shaping Africa’s future.

October 9th 2025. American Business Council Nigeria commemorated the World Sight Day with theme "Love Your Eyes'', by hosting Gabriel Ogunyemi, Regional Director for VisionSpring on the Podcast "The Business Exchange: How Business Works." Margaret Olele, CEO of the Council and host of the Podcast noted this episode underscores that eye health is not just a medical necessity, but a filip for economic development. The discussion delved into various areas - from the work of Visionspring globally, to economic value of their work across different sectors including Agriculture to policy issues, existing eyecare project of the Nigerian government "Jigi Bola 2.0", digital technology, and the opportunities of AFCFTA in driving the narrative of "See well do well". The conversation of eyecare should not be discussed in isolation because "If we integrate vision care into universal health coverage and remove trade barriers such as taxes and duties on essential screening tools and eye care equipment we will make access and affordability much easier. This will not only prevent avoidable blindness but also unlock productivity, income growth, and a culture of sustainable eye health for millions of Nigerians.” – Gabriel Ogunyemi, VisionSpring African Region Director Click on link https://lnkd.in/dB68Y6AT to listen. #worldsightday #loveyoureyes #universalhealthcoverage #healthcare #data #AFCFTA #USNIGERIATRADE #economicdevelopment

On September 30th, 2025, the American Business Council (ABC) hosted its Q3 Economic Update, themed “Galvanizing Transformation: Integrating Agriculture, Industry and Markets for Sustainable Growth.” Highlights included Opening Remarks: Nneka Enwereji, President, ABC, Remarks from USSEC: Foluso Alabi, Country Team Lead, USSEC, and Keynote Remarks from Macdonald Ukah, Head of Economic Intelligence Unit, at The FMN Group. This was followed by the panel discussion focused on Financing the Future of Food, with moderator Taiwo Oyaniran and Panelists: • Anthony Atuche, CFA, MD/CEO, (Nigeria Commodity Exchange) NCX • Foluso Alabi, Country Lead, USSEC • Bassem Kalda, GM Construction, Mantrac • Omotade Oke-egbe, Country Director, ADM Conversations centered on agricultural productivity, food security, innovative financing models, infrastructure, and climate-smart solutions to drive Nigeria’s sustainable growth. We thank our sponsors, Mantrac Nigeria Ltd and U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), as well as our distinguished speakers and participants for making this event impactful. Check out our Youtube Channel for the conversation Galvanising Transformation - Integrating Agriculture Industry and Markets for Sustainable Growth Galvanising Transformation - Integrating Agriculture Industry and Markets for Sustainable Growth Galvanising Transformation - Integrating Agriculture Industry and Markets for Sustainable Growth - Watch our Youtube Channel for the panel discussion: https://lnkd.in/dtB2XqRi

American Business Council Nigeria will like to welcome our new member EY Nigeria. EY is a global leader in Assurance, Tax, Consulting, Strategy and Transaction. EY ranks among the top 4 accounting and professional services firms in the world. They have great expertise in developing outstanding leaders and play a critical role in building a better working world for people, for clients and for communities. EY has been operating in Africa for more than 165 years, and has offices in 33 African countries with 450 partners across the continent offering support in most countries on the continent. Join us to welcome EY to the Council!

American Business Council Nigeria on behalf of Meta Facebook a member company will like to invite friends and partners to the upcoming Llama Impact Accelerator Demo Day on October 7, 2025, in Lagos, Nigeria. The Llama Impact Accelerator supports early-stage startups leveraging Meta’s large language models to address critical challenges and provide indigenous solutions. The program has been very well received with hundreds of applications across Sub-Saharan Africa. Over the past six weeks, the selected startups have received business and technical mentorship from Meta and industry partners to refine their solutions.    The Demo Day marks the culmination of the accelerator program, where ten (10) startups will pitch their solutions. The top three startups from the Demo Day will receive a combined seed funding of $50,000, and the overall winner will also have the opportunity to represent Nigeria at a regional AI Summit to compete for an additional $100,000 alongside leading startups from Africa, the Middle East, and Türkiyé. Event Details: Date: Tuesday, October 7, 2025 Time: 10 AM - 4 PM WAT Format: In-person pitches by participating startups Location: Anthonia Hall by Civic Center, Ikoyi, Lagos, Nigeria  

The American Business Council (ABC) is partnering with Africa Hyperscalers for the second edition of the Hyperscalers Convergence Africa Conference, a one-day summit convening operators, investors, regulators, and policymakers building the next phase of Africa’s digital infrastructure growth. Date: Tuesday, October 7, 2025 Venue: Civic Centre, Ozumba Mbadiwe Road, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria This year’s summit according to our partners will feature strategic conversations, deal-driven sessions, and exclusive networking powering large-scale digital infrastructure projects across the continent. The featured Speakers include: Dr. Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi (Director General, NITDA) Vivek Mittal (CEO, AFIDA) Bill Kleyman (CEO, Apolo.us / Exec Chair, Data Center Programs, Informa) Dr. Ayotunde Coker (CEO, Open Access Data Centres) Ben Roberts (Principal, Digital Economy Advisors) Snehar Shah (CEO, iXAfrica Data Centres) Dr. Krish Ranganath (Regional Executive, Africa Data Centres) Josephine Awetefe Sarouk (MD, Bayobab) George Etomi (Founding Partner, George Etomi & Partners) Lars Johannisson (CEO, Rack Centre) Marco Rebecchi (Country Manager, Nokia) Dr. Yele Okeremi (CEO, Precise Financial Systems) Hakeem Adeniji-Adele (Deputy MD, eTranzact) Oguche Agudah (former CEO, Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria) Begna Gebreyes (Head, HITT, Africa Finance Corporation) Mohammed Besheer (Deputy IT Director, Egyptian Banking Institute) Eero Toivainen (Trade Counsellor West Africa, Business Finland) This partnership underscores the Council's commitment to strengthening U.S.–Nigeria collaboration in areas that will drive and grow digital transformation in Nigeria. See you there!