Nigeria Decoded - Business Developments
October 2023
Dear Readers,
It's time for another edition of our newsletter on recent business developments in Nigeria.
This time, we've got some exciting news related to infrastructure.
Chapel Hill Denham launched Nigeria's first-ever infrastructure debt fund, the Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund (NIDF). It's worth N200 billion and aims to provide stable income by investing in infrastructure projects in Nigeria.
In other news, the proposed Abidjan-Lagos highway project is progressing well, with the AfDB and the ECOWAS Commission holding the first roundtable on the project.
Chinese-owned China Geo-engineering Corporation (CGC) is committed to constructing pipeline loops to boost water supply capacity by 480,000 cubic metres daily in Nigeria.
Meanwhile, American development agencies USAID, Prosper Africa, and Power Africa recently hosted an investor roadshow in Nigeria, featuring US institutional investors keen on investing in infrastructure opportunities.
There are some developments in the technology sector, too.
Minister for Communications and Digital Economy Bosun Tijani published a draft Strategic Blueprint for his Ministry. A policy highlight in this document is his aim to establish a one-stop AfCFTA digital and physical shop connecting Nigerian companies to the continent and vice versa.
Nigerian cryptocurrency start-up KoinWa launched a web3 education platform called EduBlok. The new initiative aims to provide university students with relevant skills. KoinWa was among 25 African fintech start-ups for the inaugural Amazon Web Services (AWS) FinTech Africa Accelerator cohort.
Nigeria announced the National Talent Export Programme on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly in New York. The program intends to shore up Nigeria's foreign exchange earnings and create one million in-demand jobs nationwide for five years. This move is a step towards reducing the unemployment rate in Nigeria.
In renewable energy news, Norwegian financier Empower New Energy provided US$ 13 million to WATT Renewable Corporation (WATT). WATT is an independently owned provider of hybrid solar solutions that delivers hybrid solar solutions with social impact to mobile network operators, financial service providers, and C&I businesses in Africa.
However, in an analysis by the World Bank in its Africa's Pulse report, the poor performance of Africa's large economies is dragging down the economic growth of Sub-Saharan Africa. It highlights Nigeria's low economic growth forecast alongside the weakening of the currency.
Finally, in defense developments, Austria-based and Chinese-owned aviation manufacturer Diamond Aircraft Industries delivered the final pair of Diamond DA62 MPP Multi-Purpose Platform special mission aircraft. Nigeria placed the order for the four planes last year, with the first DA62 MPP aircraft reaching Nigeria in May.
That's it for this edition of our newsletter. We hope you found it informative and insightful. Please reach out to us—we’d love to continue the conversation.
14 North helps businesses and organizations succeed in Sub-Saharan Africa's emerging and frontier marketspaces by delivering insights that increase opportunity and minimize risk. To learn more, please get in touch with us at info@14nstrategies.com or www.14nstrategies.com.