By Omoh Gabriel

The Federal Government will soon begin the implementation of a strategic investment master plan to bridge the country’s huge infrastructural funding gap estimated at about $2.4trillion within the next 30 years. The Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, Mrs. Saratu Umar, disclosed this during a media roundtable organised by the agency as part of its ongoing stakeholders’ sensitisation programme, in Lagos on Tuesday.

She noted that infrastructure funding was a priority under the proposed Nigerian Investment Promotion Master Plan being developed by the Commission to drive investments into critical sectors of the Nigerian economy, adding that the agency had already commenced stakeholders’ collaboration aimed at bridging the funding gap.

She said, “Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is widely acknowledged worldwide as the most useful and cheapest source of development finance because it creates employment, ensures transfer of technology, conserves foreign reserves, ensures availability of quality goods and services among others. For this reason, the competition for FDI has been very stiff, particularly in recent years due to globalisation brought about by technology.

”One of the strategies adopted by most countries to attract FDI is the establishment of Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs), with over 170 IPAs world wide competing to attract often limited FDI to their various countries. Nigeria needs over $2.8tn infrastructure funding over the next 30 years, whereas the estimated budgetary provision will be about $45bn. This leaves a huge shortfall of about $2.4tn.”

She added, “In terms of FDI, Nigeria receives an average of $7.5bn yearly. If this is constant over the next 30 years, we would have only brought in $223bn in FDI. If we compare this to the infrastructure investment requirement, we still have a huge gap.

”Therefore, a massive FDI inflow is required to service the implementation of the various strategic master plans across critical sectors of the Nigerian economy. The implementation of the NIPC’s Investment Promotion Master Plan is being designed to address the sector-specific funding gaps.”