January 02, (THEWILL) — The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has said it will focus on key policies and priorities to accelerate economic growth, create jobs and mobilise investments to build a prosperous Nigerian economy in 2026.
This is contained in a statement signed by the Hon. Minister of State for Finance, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, in Abuja on January 1, 2026.
Under the programme, the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF) will anchor a comprehensive Growth Acceleration and Investment Mobilisation Strategy aimed at strengthening macroeconomic stability, and positioning Nigeria as a premier destination for long-term foreign direct investment (FDI).
The statement said the government would build on foundational reforms implemented over the past 24 months in advancing the initiative. These include exchange rate unification, energy market restructuring, and fiscal consolidation, adding that the Tinubu Administration is advancing into a second wave of reforms focused squarely on unleashing accelerated GDP growth, productivity, and capital formation.
Itemising the strategic initiative, the government said Nigeria’s economy will enter a transition phase from stabilisation to expansion in 2026. “Going forward, the Government’s focus will be to scale output, deepen domestic value creation, and place the economy on a credible path toward a US$1 trillion GDP by 2036.”
According to Uzoka-Anietie, that aspiration will be achieved by domesticating key supply chains to use raw materials, a workforce, and intellectual property sourced competitively from Nigeria in line with the Nigeria First Policy launched by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and building an open, export-oriented economy with strong domestic aggregate demand.
“Our focus is to move decisively from stabilization to growth. The reforms underway are designed to lower risk, unlock private capital, and ensure that Nigeria delivers sustainable returns for investors while expanding opportunity for our citizens. Outlined below are the steps to be taken to deliver that outcome”, she said.
The statement outlined the following implementation process towards achieving the policy objective of the plan:
“Strategic Framework: Stability, Scale, and Returns
The 2026 economic resurgence strategy is anchored on three principles critical to investor confidence.
Macroeconomic Predictability: A stable and transparent economic environment where inflation, exchange rates, and fiscal policies are consistent enough to reduce uncertainty for investors and businesses.
Clear Sectoral Investment Pathways: Well-defined priority sectors with articulated strategies, incentives, and regulations that guide investors on where and how to deploy capital effectively.
Disciplined Policy Execution: Consistent and timely implementation of policies as designed, without abrupt reversals or weak enforcement, to build credibility and trust.
These principles will guide the Government’s reform and investment priorities.”
The Key Policy and Investment Priorities for 2026 include:
“Policy Coordination to Anchor Stability and Lower Risk Premiums. FMF will maintain close, institutionalised coordination with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to support disinflation, exchange rate stability, and orderly credit conditions. Fiscal and monetary alignment will remain central to reducing macroeconomic volatility and restoring Nigeria’s investment-grade fundamentals over the medium term. FMF accepts as a baseline the macroeconomic forecast published by CBN on December 30, 2025, regarding the Nigeria Economy Outlook.
“The Government’s objective is to lower inflation expectations, compress sovereign risk premiums, and reduce the cost of capital for both public and private investment. The coordinated approach is entailed in the Disinflation and Growth Acceleration Strategy (DGAS) document co-sponsored by the CBN, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the FIRS (now NRS).”
Outlining the Sector-Led Growth Strategy to Unlock Private Capital, the statement noted that Nigeria will pursue a sector driven growth model that combines export expansion with rising domestic demand.
“Our work will focus on dismantling various barriers to growth and infusing a “willing buyer/willing seller” philosophy in sectoral policy frameworks and regulations. Price controls and restraints on volume or market access will be stripped away to enable the full potential of these sectors to emerge, and entrepreneurial capital to flourish.
“Priority sectors are catalytic anchors which include:
Energy and gas-based industrialisation, including associated infrastructure
Agribusiness and food value chains
Manufacturing and light industry
Housing and urban infrastructure
Healthcare and life sciences
Digital services and technology-enabled trade
Creative and Tourism industry
Logistics networks and distribution infrastructure to enable export trade
Solid minerals and critical metals.
“Federal ministries, states, and development partners will align around a common investment thesis: policy clarity, bankable projects, and rapid removal of regulatory barriers. Sector-specific working groups will fast-track reforms and investment pipelines capable of absorbing large-scale domestic and foreign capital.
“For example, in partnership with key stakeholders, public and private, Nigeria will work to rebuild its cocoa growing, processing and export capabilities, allowing us to sharply boost non-oil commodity income while meeting end market requirements e.g., European Union rules over the coming years.”
On capital formation, the Federal Government plans to advance targeted reforms to deepen Nigeria’s capital and insurance markets as engines of long-term investment and risk mitigation. Priority actions include expanding long-tenor local currency instruments, improving market liquidity and transparency, and strengthening investor protections to support infrastructure, housing, and productive sector financing.
“Emphasis will also be placed on expanding retail capital mobilisation via growth in investment accounts to both draw in capital and ensure citizens participate in market upsides we anticipate will emerge. Regulatory reforms will encourage greater participation by pension funds, insurance companies, and institutional investors in capital markets.
“In parallel, insurance market reforms will focus on recapitalisation, improved supervision, and expanded coverage to better manage economic and climate-related risks. A stronger insurance sector will enhance creditworthiness, reduce project risk, and improve the overall investment climate by providing reliable risk transfer mechanisms for domestic and foreign investors.
Capital formation is central to Nigeria’s growth acceleration strategy and its ability to achieve the desired GDP growth in 2026.
“The Federal Government’s approach is focused on expanding the supply of long-term, patient capital, reducing investment risk, and ensuring efficient allocation to productive sectors of the economy. Also, deploying blended finance instruments, credit enhancements, and first-loss capital working in partnership with bilateral and multilateral development finance institutions to lower project risk and improve bankability. These mechanisms are designed to crowd in domestic institutional investors and foreign direct investment by aligning public capital with private return expectations.
The plan showed strategy to increase access to finance and financial inclusion, which entails ensuring that growth is broad-based and that capital reaches the last mile of the economy, the Federal Government will prioritise the expansion of consumer credit and financial inclusion as a core pillar of its growth strategy.
There will also be “Deepening access to affordable credit for households, microenterprises, and informal sector participants will support domestic demand, improve productivity, and translate macroeconomic reforms into tangible welfare gains.
“We will deepen product design, regulatory and go to market partnerships with CBN, commercial banks, microfinance institutions, fintechs, and credit guarantee schemes. That will enable the market to deploy innovative, targeted risk-sharing instruments, wholesale funding lines, and digital credit infrastructure to expand responsible consumer lending on an industrial scale. Emphasis will be placed on enabling, qualifying and supporting responsible use of credit among first-time borrowers, women- and youth-led enterprises, and underserved communities. In partnership with well-regulated market participants, we will seek to build a non-inflationary, repayable rising tide.”
In a sweeping change, the statement explained that the Federal Ministry of Finance will take over the development finance quasi-fiscal responsibility of the CBN and will develop a comprehensive guideline for implementing a “go forward” development finance strategy. It emphasised that Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) will play a critical and catalytic role in the successful execution of Nigeria’s Growth Acceleration and Investment Mobilisation Strategy.
“Given the scale of Nigeria’s growth ambition and the need to crowd in long-term, patient capital estimated at ~ ₦246 trillion through 2036, the Federal Government recognises DFIs as essential partners in de-risking priority sectors, anchoring private sector investor confidence, and mobilising large volumes of private capital at scale.
“DFIs bring a unique combination of long-tenor financing, concessional instruments, technical expertise, and risk-sharing capacity that is critical to unlocking investment in sectors where market failures persist despite strong fundamentals.
“These include infrastructure, energy transition, agribusiness value chains, healthcare, climate-resilient industries, and digital public infrastructure.
“Strengthening Nigeria’s domestic development financial institutions will signal the country’s capacity and seriousness to investors. Domestic DFIs, including Bank of Industry (BOI) and Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), will anchor financing and risk sharing frameworks across priority sectors and act as policy execution tools.
“Four ways in which we can strengthen them:
Improved Capitalisation and balance sheet strength: This increases the ability to write larger ticket transactions and longer tenors. This can be achieved via several mechanisms including recapitalisations, new equity infusions, and negotiated credit lines with 3rd party countries for select capital goods imports.
Improved mandate and governance reforms: Stronger boards with performance linked KPIs.
Risk sharing and credit enhancement powers: The ability to give guarantees, first loss tranches and have a co-lending right.
Alignment with the Ministry of Finance: This gives them treasury support, sovereign guarantees where applicable and policy backed lending.
The FMF will continue to work in close partnership with bilateral, multilateral, and regional Development Finance Institutions to:
Deploy risk-mitigating and investment-enabling capital that improves project bankability and accelerates financial close.
Mobilise domestic and international private capital through blended finance, guarantees, and co-investment structures.
Support project preparation, structuring, and pipeline development to shorten time-to-execution and improve investment readiness
Strengthen institutional and delivery capacity across ministries, departments, agencies, and sub-national governments.
Align financing with climate resilience, financial inclusion, and sustainability objectives, consistent with global development standards
“Nigeria’s reform momentum, policy clarity, and execution discipline provides a credible platform for DFIs to deploy capital at scale, with confidence, and measurable impact.
“The Federal Government affirms its full support for DFI-led and DFI-supported initiatives aligned with national priorities and commits to maintaining the policy consistency, institutional coordination, and implementation focus required for successful delivery.”
Sam Diala is a Bloomberg Certified Financial Journalist with over a decade of experience in reporting Business and Economy. He is Business Editor at THEWILL Newspaper, and believes that work, not wishes, creates wealth.
