AfDB invests $10.9bn in Nigeria

The African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Director-General, Lamin Barrow, announced $10.9 billion in cumulative financing approvals in Nigeria. The bank supports public and private sector projects, focusing on the High 5 priorities. The event emphasized addressing challenges faced by youth and women in agribusiness, to drive Africa’s agricultural revolution and ensure food security. Source- Vanguard

OUR REVIEW
Lamin Barrow, Director-General for the West Africa Region at the African Development Bank (AfDB), announced that the bank’s cumulative financing approvals in Nigeria have reached $10.9 billion. Speaking at the Second Interactive Session and Workshop on Developing Bankable Business Proposals for Youths in Agriculture in Abuja, Barrow highlighted AfDB’s evolution into a premier development financial institution, with Nigeria as its largest shareholder.
AfDB’s current $4.9 billion portfolio in Nigeria supports diverse public and private sector projects. Under President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina’s leadership, the bank’s High 5 priorities—Power, Feed, Industrialize, Integrate, and Improve Quality of life—have positively impacted over 400 million people.
The session focused on challenges faced by youth and women in agribusiness, especially access to finance. Barrow commended the Nigerian government’s initiatives to boost agricultural production and job creation, combating food insecurity.
AfDB Vice-President Marie-Laure Akin-Olugbade stressed agriculture’s critical role in Africa’s future, noting the continent’s vast arable land and projecting the agricultural market to be valued at $1 trillion by 2030. She emphasized agriculture’s effectiveness in reducing poverty and ensuring food security, calling for bold actions from policymakers and investments in youth and women to drive Africa’s agricultural revolution.