From Talk To Transformation: ASIS 2026 Sets New Benchmark For Policy Impact

Sterling One Foundation, in collaboration with the Office of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the United Nations System, and partners of the Africa Social Impact Summit (ASIS) will convene the ASIS 2026 High-Level Policy Engagement on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.

The session will bring together senior government leaders, chief executives, development partners, investors, and civil society leaders to advance results-driven partnerships for inclusive growth, foundational learning, women and youth empowerment, and national development delivery.

The engagement, co-hosted by the Office of the Vice President, and Sterling One Foundation, will serve as a national platform to translate continental commitments into country-level action — aligning policy reform, private sector mobilisation, and development finance around Nigeria’s most urgent priorities, including education, jobs, skills, financial inclusion, health, entrepreneurship, and institutional strengthening.

Themed “Scaling Action – Driving Inclusive Growth through Policy and Innovation,” the highlevel engagement will bring together over 200 senior leaders from government, private enterprise, development institutions, civil society, and the diplomatic community. With only five years left to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the convening is designed to drive policy reforms, unlock innovative and blended financing, and accelerate implementation across Nigeria’s most critical development priorities.

Now in its fifth year, the Africa Social Impact Summit (ASIS) has become a leading private sector-led continental platform for mobilizing public-private collaboration to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. Co-convened by Sterling One Foundation and the United Nations, ASIS has consistently elevated the role of policy innovation, partnerships, and impact financing in addressing Africa’s most pressing social and economic challenges.

Building on this foundation, the ASIS 2026 High-Level Policy Engagement will focus on translating the insights and recommendations from past ASIS communiqués into actionable national policies and financing frameworks.

The engagement aims to embed ASIS commitments into Nigeria’s policy ecosystem, elevate priority sectors as national imperatives, and mobilise capital toward measurable SDG outcomes.

Key highlights of the engagement include the launch of flagship, policy-backed initiatives, notably the Business Coalition for Education (BCE) and the Nigeria Foundational Learning Fund designed to accelerate foundational literacy and numeracy addressing the country’s out-of-school children challenge.

Also, the Women and Youth Financial and Economic Inclusion (WYFEI) Nigeria, the country’s flagship platform for advancing women and youth economic empowerment through compact-based delivery, co-investment frameworks, and performance accountability, will also be launched. It will be the country implementation platform of the African Union WYFEI programme.

Speaking ahead of the engagement, the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria said: “Nigeria’s future prosperity depends on how effectively we mobilise the private sector, development partners, and public institutions around shared national priorities. This engagement marks a critical step toward delivery-driven partnerships that unlock the full potential of our women and youth, strengthen human capital, and accelerate inclusive growth.”

According to Mrs. Olapeju Ibekwe, CEO of Sterling One Foundation, “ASIS 2026 High Level Policy Engagement represents a pivotal shift from conversation to national execution. By deliberately aligning policy, innovation, and financing, we are catalysing a framework that enables solutions to scale,

delivering real impact for millions of Nigerians while positioning Nigeria as a leader in Africa’s sustainable growth agenda.”

The event will also feature the adoption of the WYFEI Nigeria Declaration, a national statement of intent to be endorsed by government leaders, CEOs, and development partners, committing to coordinated action to unlock Nigeria’s women and youth dividend.

Anchored within the UN SDG Stimulus Framework and aligned with the African Union’s Agenda 2063, the ASIS 2026 High-Level Policy Engagement reinforces Nigeria’s leadership in translating continental and global commitments into national action, focused on inclusive growth, shared prosperity, and long-term resilience.

The convening forms part of the post–Africa Social Impact Summit national action series  designed to move beyond dialogue to systems reform, capital mobilisation, and measurable impact across Africa’s largest economy.