THE Presidency has dismissed viral social media claims that Nigeria’s participation at the ongoing 9th Tokyo International Conference for African Development (TICAD 9) in Yokohama, Japan, was reduced to an “empty booth.”
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga made available to News Point Nigeria, the Presidency said the trending video misrepresented the country’s true mission at the high-level summit.
According to Onanuga, Nigeria’s delegation led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is in Japan to pursue strategic bilateral and multilateral engagements aimed at securing concrete investments in critical sectors such as power, industry, and agriculture, rather than to participate in an open trade exhibition.
“The Nigerian delegation to the summit, working closely with Corporate Nigeria and some of our leading business leaders, did not come to Yokohama and Tokyo to attend a trade expo designed as an open forum for participating nations.
“Our focus is on achieving tangible outcomes from high-level meetings,” Onanuga said.
Nigeria’s official schedule at TICAD 9 includes a series of top-tier bilateral sessions, with President Tinubu set to meet executives of global institutions and corporations such as Toyota Corporation, CFAO, UN-Habitat, UNDP, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, is spearheading negotiations on multiple Japan-funded power projects under the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Among them are:
Lagos-Ogun Power Transmission System Improvement Project – targeted at improving grid stability, increasing wheeling capacity, and connecting industrial clusters.
NAPTIN-JICA Vocational Training Partnership focused on building technical manpower for Nigeria’s power sector.
Distributed Access Through Renewable Energy Scale-Up – a $190 million program designed to expand renewable energy access across Nigeria.
Adelabu is also expected to hold meetings with top Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) including TOSHIBA and HITACHI on technology partnerships.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Industry (BoI), led by its Managing Director, Dr. Supo Olusi, is in discussions with JICA and other multilateral institutions for its annual global fund syndication.
Beyond government officials, Nigeria’s private sector is also represented.
The Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA) is scheduled to host an investment forum on Thursday, August 21, 2025, bringing Nigerian businesses directly into conversations with Japanese investors and financiers.
The Presidency described the viral video of an empty booth labelled “Nigeria” as sensational and misleading, stressing that such exhibitions were not part of Nigeria’s official agenda.
“Social media posts are often sensational and do not tell complete stories.
“Nigeria is fully and well represented at TICAD 9 and part of the essential conversations and negotiations taking place,” Onanuga stated.
The Presidency urged Nigerians to focus on the real outcomes of the summit, which it says will include investment commitments, funding agreements, and technology transfers rather than on the optics of trade fair booths.