By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief
The World Bank Group has said it is helping to mobilise $5.79 billion in private capital for investment in Nigeria’s agriculture, telecommunications and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), in a major push to expand private-sector participation in the economy.
The financing drive is being supported by policy reforms, investment platforms, risk-sharing mechanisms and commercial financing aimed at removing barriers to investment and unlocking opportunities across critical sectors.
The initiative is also expected to strengthen food security, improve access to finance for small businesses, expand digital connectivity and create jobs, as the Federal Government intensifies efforts to improve the business environment and attract private investment.
“The World Bank supports reforms and projects that improve the investment environment and create viable opportunities. IFC complements this work by structuring investments, deploying its own capital, and bringing commercial lenders and institutional investors into those opportunities,” the institution said.
In agriculture, the World Bank Group highlighted financing arrangements for Dangote Industries Limited fertilizer production and Indorama Fertilizer, which it said were helping to expand domestic fertiliser production and improve access to agricultural inputs for more than 10 million smallholder farmers.
According to the institution, IFC helped mobilise $1.02 billion for Dangote through refinancing and financing from development institutions and commercial lenders, while $282.5 million was mobilised for Indorama through syndicated financing.
The two projects have a combined production capacity of 6.8 million metric tonnes annually, a development the bank said could reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported inputs, improve affordability and strengthen food security.
$1.89bn for small businesses
The World Bank Group said its Fostering Inclusive Finance for MSMEs in Nigeria programme, known as FINCLUDE, was designed to improve the availability and quality of financing for more than 250,000 micro, small and medium enterprises operating in job-intensive sectors.
Thirty per cent of the financing is targeted at women-led businesses, reflecting efforts to broaden access to credit among enterprises that often struggle to secure affordable funding.
The programme is backed by a $500 million package from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association, combining financing and risk-sharing instruments to encourage financial institutions and other investors to extend additional capital to underserved businesses.
The bank said FINCLUDE was expected to mobilise nearly $1.89 billion in private financing and support an estimated 850,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The initiative is particularly significant for Nigeria, where access to affordable credit remains a major constraint on the ability of small businesses to expand operations, invest in equipment and generate employment.
Telecoms attract $1.1bn
In the telecommunications sector, IFC acted as an anchor investor in a $1.2 billion bond issuance by IHS Towers, helping to mobilise more than $1.1 billion from private investors and broaden participation in the transaction.
The World Bank Group said the transaction demonstrated investor confidence in Nigeria’s digital infrastructure sector and its capital markets.
It noted that the tower-sharing model adopted by IHS Towers enables mobile network operators to expand connectivity more quickly and at lower cost while reducing the environmental footprint of network deployment.Beyond telecommunications, the institution said its Building Resilient Digital
Infrastructure for Growth (BRIDGE) Project would introduce a new model for developing Nigeria’s digital infrastructure through public-private partnerships.
Under the arrangement, a nationwide open-access fibre-optic network will be built, owned and operated through private-sector participation rather than relying exclusively on public financing.
The first round of investor selection is expected to mobilise at least $156 million in private equity, while subsequent financing rounds could unlock up to $1.1 billion in private investment by 2030.
The project is expected to extend affordable broadband access to an additional 58 million people, increasing coverage from 92 million people in 2025 to 150 million by 2030.
Its beneficiaries are projected to include an additional 42 million young people and 15 million women.
The project will also connect millions of households, 38,800 public schools, 16,900 health facilities and 3,400 local government offices to high-speed broadband internet.
According to the bank, the expanded connectivity would bring digital services closer to communities, improve access to education and healthcare, facilitate public service delivery and create new opportunities for businesses and livelihoods.
The World Bank Group attributed the growing opportunities for private capital, in part, to reforms undertaken by the Federal Government to improve foreign exchange management, strengthen public finances, reform fuel subsidies and establish more predictable conditions for investors.
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