The Regional Vice President (VP) for Africa for the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Sergio Pimenta, has said that Nigeria needs industrialization to grow its economic potential.
Pimenta said this at the BoI-IFC Conference on Empowering Futures in Lagos, where key industry players brainstormed and formulated strategies to enhance access to finance, export credit, and various risk-sharing financial structures.
The Financial Sector’s Pivotal Role
The IFC’s VP for Africa further emphasized the Nigerian financial sector’s critical contribution to fostering trade, financial inclusion, and easing finance access for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Highlighting the recent legislative reforms undertaken by Nigeria to bolster its financial infrastructure, Pimenta pointed out that these changes aim to initiate institutional and behavioral transformations among formal lenders and borrowers nationwide.
He said:
- “What is equally essential to growing Nigeria’s economic potential is industrialization. Of course, Nigeria, like many countries, faces multiple challenges.
- These include global economic uncertainties, infrastructure constraints, a lack of economic diversity, and trade and financial sector issues such as foreign exchange shortages, and limited access to finance.”
IFC’s $2 Billion Investment in Nigeria
Furthering his address at the conference, Pimenta disclosed that the IFC’s current investment in Nigeria amounts to $2 billion, marking it as the organization’s second-largest investment portfolio in Africa. These investments span various sectors, including trade finance, manufacturing, financial markets, and infrastructure.
Pimenta said:
“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 through financial intermediaries, supports agribusiness and manufacturing to enhance food security, meets domestic needs, and grows export and foster digitization.”
Collaboration with the BoI
On a related note, the Bank of Industry’s (BoI) Managing Director, Dr Olasupo Olasuyi, announced a collaborative effort with development banks to augment finance access and export credit to accelerate Nigeria’s industrialization journey.
The IFC, a World Bank Group subsidiary, is dedicated to stimulating private investment and creating market opportunities in most needy regions.
