IMF: FG woos investors for $78.5bn projects, targets 366,763 jobs

Nigeria has unveiled an investment pipeline of 65 projects requiring $78.5 billion in capital, challenging domestic and foreign investors to help close the country’s infrastructure and industrial financing gaps as the Federal Government targets faster economic growth and more than 366,000 jobs.

The projects, spanning oil and gas, power, transport, manufacturing, mining, agriculture, technology, healthcare and urban development, were presented by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, and Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, at the ongoing International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.

The scale of the portfolio reflects the government’s determination to mobilise private capital for productive investments, but the more immediate challenge is converting the proposed projects into bankable transactions capable of attracting financing and delivering measurable economic returns.

Data from the Federal Ministry of Finance’s Projects Nigeria investment portal show that oil, gas and power account for 25 projects, while industry, manufacturing and mining account for 17. Transport and maritime infrastructure account for eight projects, agriculture and agro-processing six, while technology, healthcare and urban services account for the remaining nine.

The government has established a dedicated deal room to provide investors with project details, capital requirements and direct access to project sponsors and relevant authorities, in an effort to remove regulatory bottlenecks and accelerate investment decisions.

Among the opportunities is Project Reliaxx, a crude oil evacuation and midstream infrastructure platform requiring $1.7 billion, alongside the proposed Lagos Greenline Railway, with a capital requirement of $1.29 billion.

The portfolio also includes a $2.69 billion ammonia and phosphate fertiliser project by Multipurpose Industrial Platforms Limited, a $1.25 billion integrated steel upgrade by Premium Steel and Mines, and a $1.6 billion New Port City development.

Other opportunities include a $355.6 million artificial intelligence-powered flare-gas data centre and a $105 million agro-processing and cold-chain export hub in Giri, Federal Capital Territory.

The projects are expected to generate 366,763 jobs if implemented, according to the government’s investment pipeline. However, the capital requirement represents funding sought for proposed projects, not investment already secured.

Oyedele said the government would continue to address structural obstacles to investment, including electricity pricing, transmission constraints, agricultural productivity and regulatory inefficiencies.

He also highlighted the Economic Development Incentive, which provides tax credits to qualifying businesses under Nigeria’s reformed tax framework, as part of efforts to make productive investments more attractive.

Cardoso said the country was targeting economic growth of seven per cent by 2027/2028, alongside increased crude oil production of three million barrels per day and infrastructure stock equivalent to 75 per cent of gross domestic product.

He said banks raised approximately N4.6 trillion during the recent recapitalisation exercise, with about 72 per cent sourced from the domestic capital market, demonstrating the potential of local capital to support large-scale economic activity.

The investment drive comes as Nigeria seeks to convert improved macroeconomic stability into stronger private-sector expansion. The World Bank projects that the economy will grow by an average of 4.4 per cent annually through 2028, provided reforms continue and public service delivery improves.

The Federal Government is also seeking to widen private-sector participation in infrastructure and production, with the World Bank Group separately indicating that it could help mobilise up to $5.79 billion in private financing for Nigeria in fiscal 2026.

For the Nigerian economy, the success of the $78.5 billion pipeline will depend less on the number of projects unveiled than on how many secure financing, reach financial close and enter construction and operation.

The decisive test is whether the investment drive can deliver productive capacity, reliable infrastructure, stronger exports and jobs at scale, rather than leaving Nigeria with an ambitious catalogue of opportunities still waiting for capital.