European development finance institutions have committed more than €500 million to Nigeria over the past year, with additional financing expected in the coming months, reflecting growing international confidence in the country’s ongoing economic reforms.
The funding commitment was announced at the 10th Nigeria-European Union Business Forum, where the European Investment Bank (EIB) disclosed that it had significantly expanded its investment portfolio in Nigeria across the public and private sectors.
Senior Investment Officer in the Corporate Division of the European Investment Bank, Loic Le Ruyet, revealed that the bank signed more than €500 million in financing for Nigeria last year and plans to increase its investments.
“We have signed last year over €500 million of financing in the country, in the public sector and in the financial sector mostly. There is more coming this year,” Loic Le Ruyet said.
According to Le Ruyet, the investments cover sustainable transportation, healthcare manufacturing, agriculture, renewable energy, digital infrastructure and financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), sectors considered critical to Nigeria’s long-term economic growth.
He noted that projects already supported include financing for Lagos waterways transportation, funding through the Development Bank of Nigeria to expand lending to priority sectors, healthcare manufacturing through the Bank of Industry, and agricultural value-chain projects in cocoa and dairy production.
Speaking during the financing session of the forum, the Minister of State for Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, said the growing pipeline of investments reflects increasing global confidence in the Federal Government’s economic reform agenda.
Uzoka-Anite noted that reforms such as the removal of fuel subsidies, the unification of the foreign exchange market, tax reforms and improvements in public financial management have strengthened investor confidence and positioned Nigeria as an attractive destination for long-term investment.
She explained that the new financing facilities align with the Renewed Hope National Development Plan 2026–2030 and are expected to support digital transformation, healthcare value chains, infrastructure development and improved access to finance for businesses.
“The facilities being announced today take on their strategic significance. They are not isolated initiatives. These are integral to the Renewed Hope National Development Plan 2026 to 2030,” Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite said.
Uzoka-Anite added that the investments would boost productivity, improve competitiveness and strengthen Nigeria’s economic resilience.
The forum also witnessed the launch of a €20 million Nigeria Country Window, jointly implemented by FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, and the European Development Finance Institutions Management Company (EDFI MC) under the European Union’s Agrifi and Electrifi blended finance programmes.
Speaking on the initiative, Edilberto Jose Baquero of FMO said combining agriculture and energy financing would help address two of Nigeria’s key development challenges by supporting agribusinesses while expanding access to electricity in underserved rural communities.
William Barrault of EDFI MC explained that the programme is designed to provide direct financing to small and medium-sized enterprises in agribusiness and rural electrification while attracting additional investments from other European development finance institutions.
The investment commitments underscore a growing shift in the Nigeria-European Union partnership from traditional development assistance towards investment-led economic growth, with European financiers increasingly using public finance, blended finance and strategic partnerships to mobilise private capital into sectors critical to Nigeria’s economic transformation.
Source: The Guardian
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