Addis Ababa, September 30, 2026 (FMC) — Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has called on African investors, entrepreneurs and industrial leaders to invest in the continent’s potential and help build transformative projects that can strengthen Africa’s industrial capacity and economic sovereignty.
Reflecting on the groundbreaking of the Lamu Refinery in Kenya, the Prime Minister said projects of such scale represent important steps toward creating new opportunities and laying the foundations for a stronger industrial future across East Africa.
“The groundbreaking of the Lamu Refinery serves as a reminder that moments of this kind mark a step towards enhancing Africa’s industrial capacity, creating opportunities, and establishing the foundations for greater economic and industrial sovereignty throughout East Africa,” Prime Minister Abiy said in a social media post following the ceremony.
He called on what he described as the continent’s industrial captains, investors and entrepreneurs to place greater confidence in Africa’s potential and channel investment toward projects capable of transforming economies and creating opportunities for future generations.
The Prime Minister stressed that Africa’s future cannot be shaped solely through external investment or imported solutions, but requires Africans themselves to take part in building the productive capacity that will define the continent’s economic trajectory.
“You, the industrial captains, investors, and entrepreneurs throughout the continent, must invest in Africa, have faith in our potential, and construct the transformative projects which will determine our common continental future,” he said.
He further underscored the shared responsibility of African countries and their private sectors in shaping that future, saying the continent’s development will depend on collective efforts to build productive and industrial capabilities.
“The future of Africa is something that we shall have to build together,” Prime Minister Abiy said.
The Lamu Refinery groundbreaking brings together energy, infrastructure and industrial ambitions around a major project intended to expand refining capacity and strengthen regional economic linkages in East Africa.