The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, has called for a more deliberate strategy to attract and retain sustainable foreign direct investment (FDI) capable of creating jobs, strengthening local businesses, transferring technology and boosting productivity.
The call was made on Thursday, 10 September, 2026, at a virtual pre-summit dialogue themed “Unlocking Sustainable FDI for Productivity and Shared Prosperity.”
The dialogue brought together experts from the private sector, investment promotion, infrastructure, climate finance and economic research to examine the conditions required to maximise the contribution of foreign investment to Nigeria’s economic development.
In his welcome address, Dr Suleyman Ndanusa, Chief Executive Officer of Global Mandate Consulting Limited, said Nigeria must move beyond investment promotion to what he described as investment delivery, noting that attracting capital was only the beginning of the investment process.
Ndanusa acknowledged improvements in Nigeria’s investment climate but said the country must prioritise long-term FDI that brings machinery, technology, expertise and jobs while strengthening local supply chains.
“Investment promotion tells investors that Nigeria is open for business. Investment delivery ensures that they can actually do business after they arrive,” he said.
He identified land administration, customs procedures, electricity supply, multiple regulators, overlapping charges and policy inconsistencies as some of the challenges requiring stronger coordination between government institutions and the private sector.
Ndanusa also urged the government to assess investment performance beyond the value of investments announced, saying attention should be given to capital actually deployed, jobs created, technology transferred, Nigerian businesses integrated into supply chains, export capacity generated and productivity gains achieved.
He called on states to develop credible investment propositions based on their comparative advantages and establish a practical roadmap for attracting and retaining productive FDI.
Representing the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Ms Aisha Rimi, the Commission’s Director of Policy Advocacy, Mr Abayomi Salami, said Nigeria must ensure that FDI delivers tangible economic value through job creation, technology transfer, stronger local supply chains, export growth and improved productivity.
Salami said the NIPC was working to create a more competitive, predictable and transparent investment environment by facilitating investments, resolving bottlenecks and improving coordination across government.
He identified agro-processing, manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, digital technology, healthcare, mining and logistics as sectors offering significant investment opportunities.
He, however, stressed the need for continued reforms to reduce the cost and complexity of doing business in the country.
Salami also highlighted efforts to strengthen investment promotion at the state level and deepen linkages between multinational companies, large domestic businesses and Nigerian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
According to him, NIPC is working with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to connect SMEs with major companies and build their capacity to participate in investment value chains.
He added that the Commission was concluding an investment opportunity mapping exercise aimed at identifying priority sectors and supporting the development of bankable projects.
Speaking on strengthening the domestic investment ecosystem, Mr Muhammad Adama, Partner and Head of Consumer and Industrial Markets Assurance Services Group at KPMG Nigeria, urged Nigeria to concentrate on sectors where it has clear competitive advantages while deliberately connecting foreign investors with capable domestic businesses.
Adama identified oil and gas, agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing and the digital economy as sectors with significant potential.
He said SMEs should be enabled to participate in the supply chains of multinational companies and foreign investors, while investment incentives should be tied to measurable outcomes such as job creation, skills development, local procurement and supply-chain development.
He also emphasised the importance of policy consistency in attracting long-term FDI, distinguishing it from portfolio investment, which can move quickly in response to market conditions.
According to him, investors planning projects over five-, 10- or 15-year horizons need confidence that the policy and macroeconomic environment will remain predictable.
Adama noted that uncertainty over the application of new tax provisions to businesses operating in special economic and export processing zones could affect investor confidence, stressing the need for greater clarity and stability in Nigeria’s investment framework.
Ms Ifeoma Finnnih, Director of Infrastructure and Climate at Chapel Hill Denham, said Nigeria could leverage its growing pool of domestic long-term capital to unlock productive investments and strengthen the country’s attractiveness to foreign investors.
Finnnih said Nigeria’s pension industry, with assets exceeding N31 trillion, represented a significant source of patient capital, although only a relatively small proportion was invested in infrastructure and other alternative assets.
She said well-structured and bankable infrastructure transactions could help channel more domestic capital into productive assets while creating investment structures capable of giving foreign investors greater confidence.
She identified revenue and offtake uncertainty, foreign exchange exposure, sponsor capacity, governance and reporting weaknesses, and poor risk allocation as major barriers to long-term investment.
According to her, Nigeria’s challenge was not necessarily a lack of capital but a shortage of well-structured transactions capable of addressing investor risks and meeting due diligence requirements.
The dialogue highlighted the need to align FDI with Nigeria’s infrastructure, climate and productive-sector priorities, with participants stressing that investment frameworks must improve competitiveness, expand productive capacity, generate employment and strengthen linkages between domestic and international investors.
The pre-summit dialogue is part of stakeholder engagements preceding the 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit (NES#32), contributing to the broader national conversation on policies and actions required to achieve sustainable economic growth, higher productivity and shared prosperity.