Vice President Kashim Shettima has maintained that Nigeria is positioned as the natural hub for the African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) 3.4 trillion-dollar market.
Shettima cited Nigeria’s sovereign rating by platforms like Fitch and Moody’s as part of the reasons, at the Roundtable hosted by the Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU), with the theme “Risk, Reform, Return,” held on the margins of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, New York City, September 22, 2025.
According to Shettima, “In April, Fitch upgraded Nigeria’s sovereign rating to B with a stable outlook, and Moody’s lifted its issuer rating to B3 with a stable outlook.”
He stressed that the two rating platforms cited Nigeria’s improved buffers and clearer policy direction as their barometer, highlighting that, “This positions Nigeria as the natural hub for the AfCFTA’s 3.4 trillion-dollar market.”
Seeks More Partnerships Across Various Sectors in Nigeria
At the event, Vice President Kashim Shettima showcased Nigeria’s 200-billion-dollar energy transition opportunity to investors.
- He emphasized the need for “partnerships” to maximize the multi-faceted, multi-billion-dollar investment opportunities across the country.
On energy, the Vice President highlighted that, “With 210 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves and one of the highest solar irradiation levels in Africa, Nigeria offers a 200-billion-dollar energy transition opportunity.”
- He stressed that fiscal incentives and VAT waivers are de-risking investment in both traditional and renewable power assets, from gas-fired independent power plants to off-grid solar and clean hydrogen pilots.
- Additionally, VP Shettima highlighted that while Nigeria faces a one-billion-dollar annual gap in transport, ports, and power infrastructure, through InfraCorp and the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, the government is blending sovereign and private finance to fund metro lines, dry ports, and industrial corridors, building the backbone of West African trade and creating long-term revenue streams for investors.
“Special Economic Zone clusters now host over five billion dollars in installed industrial capacity, with backward-integration incentives and AfCFTA corridors opening a multi-billion-dollar continental market.
“These reforms are transforming Nigeria into Africa’s production floor and innovation lab,” he added.
- The Vice President maintained that Nigeria hosts forty-four commercially viable minerals worth over seven hundred billion dollars under a new beneficiation and security regime.
- He urged investors to secure early positions in Nigeria’s lithium, gold, bitumen, and rare earths, which, according to him, are critical to the global green transition.
Backstory
Recall that Fitch Ratings, in April 2025, had upgraded Nigeria’s outlook to Stable from Negative, highlighting renewed confidence in the Tinubu administration’s commitment to far-reaching policy reforms.
While Nigeria’s long-term foreign currency rating remained at ‘B’ at the time, Fitch said the economic direction taken since mid-2023 is starting to bear fruit.
The reforms—exchange rate liberalisation, tighter monetary policy, removal of fuel subsidies, and an end to deficit monetisation—have improved macroeconomic credibility, reduced distortions, and enhanced resilience to shocks.
