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The African Development Bank has allocated 1.44 billion U.S. dollars to bolster Nigeria’s infrastructure development. This funding will be directed towards enhancing energy, power, transportation, water, and sanitation infrastructure in the West African nation.
Lamin Barrow, Director General of the Bank’s Nigeria Country Department, emphasized that Nigeria faces a significant infrastructure deficit, hindering its efforts to diversify beyond oil production and achieve competitiveness in global exports. According to the 2020 National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan, Nigeria needs an estimated 2.3 trillion U.S. dollars in infrastructure investments from 2020 to 2043 to reach the international standard of 70 percent of GDP. The energy sector alone requires 759 billion U.S. dollars, while transportation needs 575 billion dollars.
Barrow highlighted the African Development Bank’s commitment to supporting federal and state governments in improving national and state-level infrastructure. As of April 2024, 31 percent of the Bank’s active portfolio, totaling 1.44 billion U.S. dollars, is dedicated to infrastructure development in Nigeria.
Moreover, Barrow stressed the importance of accelerating domestic resource mobilization, enhancing agricultural productivity, developing value chains and infrastructure, mitigating investment risks, prioritizing natural resource value addition, strengthening institutional capacity, and addressing the skills gap to boost youth employment for Nigeria’s industrial renaissance.
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