Former president Olusegun Obasanjo says Nigeria is not progressing economically as it should, despite its potential and size.

Speaking on Thursday at the Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM2024) in Abuja, Obasanjo said the country has failed to maintain steady economic advancement for decades.

He said: “We are not where we should be economically. For over three or four decades, Nigeria has taken two steps forward, one step aside, and maybe one or two steps backward.”

Obasanjo, who chairs the advisory council of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF), spoke during a high-level conversation moderated by Fifi Peters, a senior anchor at CNBC Africa.

The session was themed: “African Renaissance in an Era of Turbulence: Are the Lions Still on the Move?”

Obasanjo challenged the idea that Africa’s so-called “lions” — its leading economies — are truly advancing.

He listed Nigeria, Egypt, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and South Africa as key players in the continent’s economic future but noted that most are either stagnating or regressing.

“The lions are there, but they are not moving as they should. And until they do, Africa won’t move,” he said.

He noted Egypt as a possible exception but said the rest were underperforming both economically and politically.

Obasanjo called for a complete rethink of leadership and governance systems in Africa, warning that the continent cannot continue depending on foreign aid and external models of development.

“Aid is not the way forward. We’ve lived too long on aid. It’s time to substitute that dependency with internal strategies.

“We must also rethink Western liberal democracy. It hasn’t delivered — even for those who invented it,” he said.

He advocated for governance structures rooted in consensus and communal values, saying Africa must build its systems based on its realities rather than copying foreign models.

“We must stop copying and start adapting. Our democracy today is too focused on money, it’s moneytocracy,” he said.

Obasanjo also praised the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), describing it as one of the few pan-African initiatives that has been properly implemented.

He urged sustained commitment to intra-African trade, industrialisation, and economic self-reliance.

Responding to Obasanjo, Fifi Peters referenced The Lion King, stressing that every African country, big or small, must play its part in driving the continent’s economic renaissance.