Sir Sam Jonah says Nigerian state agencies subjected his real estate investment to ‘sustained harassment’

Ghanaian business leader Sir Sam Jonah has disclosed that a significant real estate investment he made in Nigeria has been subjected to what he describes as “sustained harassment” by state agencies. He said Ghanaian workers at the project site had also experienced treatment similar to scenes of xenophobic attacks that have been condemned elsewhere on the continent. Sir Sam Jonah made the disclosure while delivering the keynote address at the Global Business Forum – Ghana Edition on Friday, August 28, 2026.

He said he was sharing his experience to highlight the broader challenges confronting African investors operating in other African countries. “I have made a significant investment in a real estate development in Nigeria, a country I hold in high regard and in whose promise I have long believed. That investment has been subjected to sustained harassment by state agencies,” he said.

“Ghanaian workers on the site have endured treatment not dissimilar to the scenes we deplore in South Africa,” he added. ‘What hope has the young entrepreneur?’ Sir Sam Jonah, who began his career underground at Obuasi before leading Ashanti Goldfields to become the first operating African company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, said his experience raised concerns about the prospects of smaller African businesses seeking to expand across borders. “If this is the experience of an investor with my resources, my networks and my grey hairs, what hope has the young entrepreneur with none of these?” he asked.

He warned that the treatment of African investors within Africa could undermine efforts to deepen intra-African investment and trade. “When African capital is harassed in Africa, we should not wonder why it flees to London and Dubai,” he said. Call for protection of African investors Sir Sam Jonah urged governments across the continent to give African investors and workers the same level of protection and attention afforded to foreign investors.

“Protect the African investor and the African worker in your jurisdiction as zealously as you court the foreign one — for no treaty can accomplish what hospitality refuses,” he said. His comments come amid renewed calls for African businesses to expand across national borders and take advantage of opportunities created by the African Continental Free Trade Area. The disclosure also adds to concerns about whether the treatment of Af…

Ghanaian business leader Sir Sam Jonah has warned that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is in “grave danger” of failing if African countries do not demonstrate stronger commitment to its implementation. He said the continent’s most ambitious economic integration project since independence was not being threatened by a lack of vision, but by protectionist policies, xenophobia and the treatment of African investors and workers in other African countries. Delivering the keynote address at the Global Business Forum – Ghana Edition on Friday, August 28, Sir Sam Jonah said African countries must move beyond declarations and ensure that the principles of free trade are reflected in how businesses and investors are treated.