The Development Bank of Nigeria has disbursed more than N1 trillion to over one million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), supporting the creation of more than 1.6 million jobs since it began operations in 2017. The milestone was disclosed by Dr. Tony Okpanachi, Managing Director of DBN during a media briefing in Lagos, where he outlined the bank’s achievements and unveiled its growth strategy for the next five years. Established to address financing gaps faced by small businesses, DBN provides long-term funding, credit guarantees and capacity-building support through a network of participating financial institutions. Building on its achievements, DBN has…
Author: Elvis Eromosele
Nigeria’s telecommunications sector attracted just $7.24 million in foreign capital in the first quarter of 2026, marking its lowest quarterly inflow in more than four years despite a 50 per cent tariff increase approved to strengthen operator finances and stimulate investment. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that foreign capital inflows into the sector accounted for only 0.07 per cent of the total $10.37 billion imported into Nigeria during the period. The figure represents a sharp 91.04 per cent decline from the $80.78 million recorded in the first quarter of 2025 and a 92.99 per cent drop…
Nigerians may soon pay more for soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages following the Senate’s approval of a new excise duty framework that replaces the current flat-rate tax with a percentage-based levy tied to retail prices. The upper chamber approved the measure on Wednesday while considering the report of the Joint Committee on Finance and Customs, Excise and Tariff on the Customs, Excise Tariff (Amendment) Bill. Lawmakers also endorsed the creation of a dedicated funding mechanism to support public health interventions nationwide. The proposed reform is aimed at addressing the rising burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, obesity,…
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has directed electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) to compensate eligible Band A customers affected by power supply shortfalls between February and March 2026. The commission announced the decision in a statement issued on Thursday, unveiling Directive No. NERC/2026/002 on the Special Compensation of Band A Customers Arising from Grid Generation Constraints. According to NERC, widespread generation shortages during the two-month period prevented several DisCos from meeting the minimum electricity supply commitments required under the service-based tariff framework. The regulator explained that the shortfalls were largely caused by inadequate gas supply and the vandalism of critical…
By Gerald Ukor Bloomberg’s recent characterisation of Peter Obi’s reported decision to contest the 2027 presidential election as an act that would “split the opposition” reflects a common but fundamentally flawed interpretation of Nigerian politics. It is a narrative that starts from a questionable assumption: that Peter Obi is somehow the obstacle to opposition unity. The facts suggest otherwise. If there is one lesson from Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election, it is that traditional political analysis failed spectacularly to understand the emergence of Peter Obi and the movement behind him. For months before the election, many commentators dismissed the Obidient movement…
Nigeria is losing an estimated 35 million metric tonnes of food annually due to poor storage facilities, inadequate infrastructure, and inefficiencies across the agricultural value chain, according to a new report by Rome Business School Nigeria. The report, titled “The Food Sector in Nigeria: Consumption Patterns, New Business Models, and Emerging Opportunities,” warns that despite the country’s food sector being valued at more than $233 billion, persistent structural challenges are undermining food security and economic growth. According to the study, nearly half of Nigeria’s perishable food production is lost each year, resulting in economic losses estimated between N3.5 trillion and…
The World Bank Group has committed more than $3.8 billion to climate-smart agriculture projects across Africa between 2022 and 2025, reinforcing efforts to strengthen food security and build resilience against the growing impact of climate change on the continent’s farming sector. The investment is being channelled largely through the Accelerating Innovation and Catalysing Capacity for Resilience in Africa (AICCRA) programme, which has evolved from a series of pilot projects into a continent-wide initiative aimed at transforming agricultural systems. The programme entered a new phase last year following the approval of an additional $46 million grant to expand climate-smart farming technologies…
Tosin Eniolorunda, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Moniepoint, has called for the next phase of Nigeria’s fintech evolution to focus on expanding access to credit by leveraging the vast transaction data generated through the country’s growing digital payments infrastructure. Speaking at the launch of the Nigeria Payments System Vision (PSV) 2028 in Abuja, Eniolorunda said payment platforms have already established the trust, visibility and transaction history needed to unlock financing for millions of small businesses that remain excluded from formal credit markets. According to Eniolorunda, digital payment systems generate valuable data that can help financial institutions make faster and…
By Elvis Eromosele For over a decade, Nigeria has been locked in a gruelling war of attrition. From the blood-soaked plains of the Northeast, where Boko Haram and ISWAP splinter cells mutate, to the dense forests of the Northwest, Middle Belt and South West, where ruthless bandit cartels execute mass kidnappings with impunity, the nation is bleeding. Despite billions of naira funnelled into defence budgets, the Nigerian military frequently appears as hapless as the civilian population it is sworn to protect. Troops are overstretched, intelligence is habitually compromised, and conventional infantry tactics are failing against a fluid, asymmetrical enemy. Public…
Nigeria’s pension industry recorded a significant milestone in April 2026, with total pension assets rising to an all-time high of N30.94 trillion, according to the latest data from the National Pension Commission (PenCom). The figure represents a 4.8 per cent increase from the N29.52 trillion recorded in March 2026, reflecting a monthly growth of N1.42 trillion in the industry’s asset base. According to PenCom’s unaudited pension funds industry portfolio report for the period ended April 30, 2026, the growth was largely driven by a sharp increase in pension fund investments in the equities market. Domestic ordinary shares climbed to N6.51…