Nigeria does not lack cash, but rather has an adequate number of investable, bankable prospects that can draw in and absorb available funds, according to experts at the 2026 Chief Executive Officer Forum of the UN Global Compact Network Nigeria.
Chief executives, legislators, financiers, and development partners convened at the closed-door meeting in Lagos with the theme “Financing a Dignified Future: Aligning Capital, Policy and Business Action” to discuss how finance, policy, and entrepreneurship might boost economic productivity.
In her introductory speech, Naomi Nwokolo, CEO and Executive Director of UN Global Compact Network Nigeria, called on corporate executives to turn their attention from long-standing obstacles to quick fixes that promote sustainable growth, livable wages, and long-term competitiveness.
Maryam Musa Yahaya, the Director-General of the Northwest Governors Forum, contributed to the discussion by emphasizing the need for state governments to actively involve investors in order to address certain structural impediments, such as power, regulatory friction, and security concerns.
Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal presented his administration’s 10-year development plan, highlighting a workable model, with the goals of strengthening policy predictability, enhancing geophysical data, and increasing internally generated revenue from N90 million to approximately N45 billion per month.
The ability of small businesses to become financially viable through appropriate record-keeping and corporate governance continues to be the larger barrier, according to Ini Ebong, Deputy Managing Director of First Bank of Nigeria, who addressed financial access and said that financial inclusion must be treated as critical infrastructure rather than corporate social responsibility.
Regarding institutional capital deployment, Adeniyi Falade, Group Chief Operating Officer of Custodian Investment, disclosed that less than 3% of the N32 trillion asset pool of the pension industry is devoted to infrastructure because there aren’t enough well-structured, bankable projects.
In a similar vein, Anthony Youdeowei, Managing Director of Sahara Power Group, pointed out that resolving energy deficiencies necessitates significant funding for distribution infrastructure in addition to precise rate regimes to guaranty investment returns.
Carlos Rojas-Arbulú, Canada’s Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, offered an international trade viewpoint, stating that although bilateral merchandise trade between the two countries has exceeded $3 billion, global capital is still very selective, giving priority to transparent data and bankable feasibility studies over overall market potential.
