Development can’t be donated – Wike

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has stated that development in any nation cannot be donated but must be built.

Wike made the remark on Thursday while delivering his keynote address at the 2025 Innovate Africa Conference in Abuja.

Speaking on the theme “Re-imagining Africa’s Leadership and Investment,” the former Rivers State governor said there is no country in the world that has ever achieved greatness through the benevolence of others.

“No nation or continent has ever achieved greatness through the benevolence of others. Across the continent, both in military and civilian dispensations, leaders have often emerged through self-serving conspiracies that bear little or no relation to national interest or development priorities.

“Many African nations have been saddled with leaders unprepared for the enormity of leadership. The result is a tragic pattern of groping in the dark, with nations endlessly experimenting with the fundamentals of development: basic infrastructure, primary healthcare, functional economies, efficient democratic and judicial systems, and credible institutions,” he stated.