BoI Partners International Finance Corporation to Improve Access to Finance in Nigeria to Bolster Industrialization

The Bank of Industry (BoI) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) have joined forces to enhance access to finance and export credit, aiming to bolster Nigeria’s industrialization efforts. Dr. Olasupo Olusi, Managing Director of BoI, made this announcement during the BOI-IFC Conference on Empowering Futures held recently in Lagos.

Olasupo emphasized that the conference provided a platform for generating innovative ideas and initiatives to improve access to finance, export credit, partial credit guarantees, and other risk-sharing financing structures. 

He highlighted the importance of development banks like BoI and financial institutions like IFC in expanding their risk appetite through unconventional financing approaches, particularly given the current macroeconomic conditions in Nigeria.

The visit of IFC’s Regional Vice President for Africa, Sergio Pimenta, and his team to Nigeria underscored IFC’s unwavering commitment to supporting the development of Africa’s largest economy. The event also highlighted the strong partnership between IFC and development finance institutions (DFIs).

The conference aimed to formulate a comprehensive and actionable strategy to advance Nigeria’s industrial growth and development in alignment with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’.

Delivering his keynote, Pimenta said, that IFC’s investment portfolio in Nigeria is the second largest in Africa and stands at $2 billion, concentrated across trade finance, manufacturing, financial markets, and infrastructure.

He added that IFC’s strategic objectives in Nigeria are aimed at supporting diversified growth, enhancing inclusion, and promoting sustainability and job creation.

“In addition, IFC’s work boosts universal energy access and green energy adoption, fosters increased access to finance for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) through financial intermediaries, supports agribusiness and manufacturing to enhance food security, meet domestic needs, and grow export and foster digitization,” he said.

He stated that the Nigerian financial sector has a key role to play in supporting trade, financial inclusion, and access to finance for MSMEs.

He noted that to further strengthen its financial infrastructure, Nigeria has recently embarked on legislative reforms to catalyze institutional and behavioral change among both formal lenders and borrowers across the country.

Speaking on the nation’s infrastructure gap, he said Nigeria’s rapidly growing population, projected to nearly double to 400 million by 2050 coupled with urbanization underscores the urgent need for infrastructure development.