Nigerian SMEs, movies, startups to get $618m to create jobs, lift the economy
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
A consortium of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), and French Development Agency (FDA) plans to invest $618 million in Nigeria’s Digital and Creative Enterprises Programme (I-DICE).
The fund will support 225 creative startups and 451 digital technologies in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (digital SMEs).
It will help create 6.1 million jobs and add $6.4 billion worth of economic productivity to Nigeria’s economy, the largest in Africa, said AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina.
He announced the plan at the Nigeria International Economic Partnership Forum during the 77th United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“That is the power of international partnerships working for Nigeria. Investors must recognise this and invest. The future is not just digital; the future will be driven by digital revolution,” Adesina pitched.
“Today, Nigeria has five of the seven unicorns in Africa and raised almost $1.4 billion of the total of $4 billion raised by Fintech companies across Africa in 2021.
“When you think of financial services digital innovations, think Nigeria, with Flutterwave, OPay, Andela and Interswitch holding the status of unicorn companies, worth at least $1 billion each.”
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AfDB invests $4.5b in Nigeria
Adesina said the AfDB has invested $4.5 billion in Nigeria, and the country remains an attractive investment destination, according to reporting by Nairametrics.
He disclosed the IDB and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have also provided $540 million to develop Special Agro-industrial Processing Zones (SAPZs) to unlock agricultural potential in Nigeria.
The aim is to boost food and agribusiness value chains across the country and make Nigeria more competitive.
Reducing Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit is also important, Adesina stressed, citing the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP) which shows Nigeria will need $759 billion to support infrastructure over a 23-year horizon (2020-2043).
“This covers tackling the crippling lack of energy to power the economy, including power generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure, water and sanitation, and transport infrastructure.”
The AfDB Group disclosed in July its financial sector portfolio in Nigeria is $1.3 billion, which represents 30 per cent of its portfolio.