NSIA: Expanding footprints for national development

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) has increasingly grown from being a stabilisation and savings mechanism to a national system-builder, using capital, partnerships and expertise to tackle structural challenges that restrict opportunity for millions of Nigerians. In this analysis, Assistant Editor, Nduka Chiejina, examines how NSIA is fostering long-term economic development

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) has gradually woven itself into Nigeria’s development architecture. Created to manage savings for future generations, provide fiscal stabilisation support during economic shocks and invest in critical domestic infrastructure, NSIA’s expansive implementation of its mandate has earned it global recognition. In 2025, it achieved a perfect score on the Global SWF Governance, Sustainability & Resilience Index and maintained its 9/10 rating on the Linaburg-Maduell Transparency Index, underlining its strong governance standards.

Financially, 2025 was a pivotal year for the authority. As a dollar-funded institution with globally diversified investments, NSIA reports its statements in naira for compliance with its enabling Act while presenting its results in dollar terms to give stakeholders a true picture of long-term value. This dual reporting structure has become essential in a period of exchange-rate volatility. By June 2025, NSIA crossed the $3 billion mark in net assets for the first time. The authority also recorded a 6 per cent year-on-year rise in Core Total Comprehensive Income, which stood at N202.10 billion for the first half of the year. With net assets rising from $1 billion at inception to $3.10 billion by mid-2025, NSIA has sustained a compound annual growth rate of 9.9 per cent across several economic cycles. The achievement is notable given a global environment characterised by weak growth and fluctuating interest rates, particularly in markets where NSIA has long-term exposures.

While the financial figures illustrate stability, it is the authority’s widening portfolio of transformative projects that best captures the essence of 2025. One of the most significant developments was the establishment of the Impact Innovation Fund, created in partnership with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The $28 million fund blends concessional financing from JICA with NSIA’s capital and is designed to support early-stage Nigerian startups building technology-driven solutions to social and economic challenges. Nigeria’s technology ecosystem continues to suffer from chronic early-stage financing gaps, and the Fund aims to help young companies validate their ideas, build strong market offerings and scale commercially.

The Impact Innovation Fund builds on three years of NSIA’s growing influence in the innovation landscape through the NSIA Prize for Innovation (NPI). The third edition of the Prize attracted more than 5,000 applications from young entrepreneurs nationwide and awarded over $250,000 to top innovators. The Prize has become a stepping stone for promising founders to access technical training, global mentorship networks and additional funding. Many of its winners have gone on to raise follow-on capital. “The Prize has become more than an award; it is a gateway for ambitious founders to gain visibility and build resilient businesses,” a mentor associated with the programme said.

This expanding focus on innovation sits at the heart of NSIA’s long-term philosophy: systems that produce transformative change require both capital and talent. By supporting these two pillars simultaneously, the authority is laying the foundation for a new generation of Nigerian innovators who can compete on a global scale.

The year also recorded major expansion in NSIA’s healthcare investments. Working closely with the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), the authority’s healthcare subsidiary, MedServe, was appointed project manager for the upgrade of oncology and nuclear medicine facilities across six major federal hospitals. The partnership builds on NSIA’s track record of delivering advanced medical infrastructure, including the operation of an oncology centre and two diagnostics centres, as well as the construction of ten new state-of-the-art facilities.

In 2025, MedServe commissioned three upgraded oncology centres at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital and the Federal Teaching Hospital Katsina. All three facilities completed physics acceptance testing and full system calibration. Patients have begun receiving treatment at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, while training sessions at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital and Federal Teaching Hospital Katsina are scheduled to begin shortly.

Recognising the importance of human capacity in delivering modern healthcare, NSIA expanded its oncology training programme, which was launched in July 2024. The programme, valued at $2 million, aims to train 500 clinicians in oncology, radiotherapy, oncology nursing and pathology. Delivered in partnership with Varian/Siemens Healthineers, Roche and BIO Ventures for Global Health, the 16-week curriculum is hosted at the MedServe LUTH Cancer Centre. So far, more than 186 clinicians have completed the rigorous coursework, representing over 10,000 hours of specialised training.

Beyond healthcare and innovation, energy remained a central pillar of NSIA’s agenda in 2025. The authority advanced several initiatives aimed at improving energy access, supporting the transition to cleaner sources, and strengthening the country’s energy security. Central to this effort is the Renewable Investment Platform for Limitless Energy (RIPLE), an investment vehicle designed to unlock opportunities across the renewable energy value chain. The platform targets projects ranging from diesel-to-renewable energy transition schemes to photovoltaic manufacturing and battery storage operations.

RIPLE builds on the success of the 10MW Kano Solar Project, which remains the largest grid-connected solar plant in the country. The project has served as a proof of concept for larger renewable energy investments and has strengthened NSIA’s confidence in accelerating clean energy solutions. In addition to RIPLE, the Authority launched the Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE) Fund in 2025, in partnership with Africa50, the International Solar Alliance and Sustainable Energy for All. The Fund is structured to attract private capital into off-grid and mini-grid developments in underserved areas.

The authority also continued to support early-stage projects through its Construction Finance Warehouse Facility, which provides bridge financing that helps developers meet construction milestones and achieve financial close. Taken together, these initiatives signify a coordinated strategy: create the platforms, financing tools and partnerships required to push renewable energy solutions into the mainstream.

Agriculture remained another major focus area. Through its management of the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative (PFI), NSIA sustained gains that have accumulated over nearly a decade. When the authority assumed responsibility for the initiative in 2017, only four fertiliser blending plants were operational in the country. Today, more than 80 plants are in active production, supporting the creation of over 100,000 jobs and producing about 130 million bags of fertiliser so far.

This expansion has stabilised prices for smallholder farmers, improved access to critical agricultural inputs, and revived the fertiliser blending sector.

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In 2025, the authority worked closely with the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) to transition PFI-NPK Ltd into a new governance structure. This move forms part of a broader sector restructuring effort and ensures that the gains recorded under NSIA’s stewardship are preserved for the long term.

The housing sector also featured prominently in NSIA’s 2025 operations. In collaboration with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Cities and Estates Initiative, the authority supported the development of large-scale affordable housing projects in Kano. As of the third quarter of 2025, the project had reached 75 per cent completion and was progressing at eight  per cent ahead of schedule—an uncommon achievement in Nigerian construction.

Beyond executing projects, NSIA has become a leading force in shaping Nigeria’s financial architecture. A landmark intervention in 2025 was its contribution to the N100 billion capitalisation of the National Credit Guarantee Company (NCGC). Alongside the Bank of Industry, MOFI and the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CreditCorp), the authority helped establish NCGC as a major risk-sharing platform that reduces the lending risks borne by banks and microfinance institutions. By providing credit guarantees, NCGC expands access to finance for millions of households and small businesses that historically have been excluded from formal credit channels.

The authority’s participation aligns with its broader history of strengthening credit markets. In 2017, NSIA co-developed InfraCredit, the domestic currency guarantor that has mobilised more than N300 billion from local capital markets for infrastructure projects. That same drive led to the recent creation of the Green Guarantee Company (GGC), the world’s first climate-focused guarantor. GGC was launched in collaboration with the Green Climate Fund, the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and NorFund. Its objective is to mobilise climate-aligned capital by de-risking environmentally sustainable projects across developing markets.

The authority also played a role in shaping Nigeria’s environmental policy framework. In November 2025, the Federal Government approved the National Carbon Market Framework, an outcome supported by NSIA’s participation in the Intergovernmental Committee on Carbon Market Activation. The framework positions Nigeria to participate in global carbon markets by producing high-integrity carbon credits. It also opens pathways for climate finance on a scale that can support renewable energy, forest conservation, clean cooking initiatives and other sustainability projects.

As NSIA deepened its role in national development throughout 2025, its interventions reflected a philosophy that development goes beyond capital deployment. The authority’s leadership increasingly framed its work in terms of building durable systems—systems that outlive individual administrations, withstand economic shocks and create the institutional capacity needed for long-term national progress. Over the last several years, NSIA has demonstrated that the right combination of strategic investment, transparent governance and long-term planning can reshape entire sectors.

This mindset became even more pronounced as the year drew to a close. Cumulatively, NSIA’s interventions across infrastructure, healthcare, innovation, agriculture, financial markets and energy have created more than 245,000 jobs—directly and indirectly. These jobs represent the human impact behind the authority’s financial results, touching lives from the rural farmer revived by a functional fertiliser plant to the young engineer contributing to Nigeria’s growing renewable energy base.

The authority’s work has also strengthened Nigeria’s global perception. Its consistent high scores on the Linaburg-Maduell Transparency Index and its recent 100 per cent rating on the Global SWF Governance, Sustainability and Resilience Index position it among the world’s best-governed sovereign wealth institutions. An official close to the evaluation process remarked that NSIA “has become a reference point for transparency and institutional discipline.” These recognitions matter not only for prestige but for the credibility they bring when negotiating global partnerships, mobilising foreign capital and attracting co-investors.

Looking toward 2026, NSIA appears prepared to leverage both its financial and institutional strength. The authority enters the new year with a broader portfolio, a more diversified pipeline of projects and stronger partnerships with global development institutions. It also carries a renewed commitment to the principles that have defined its growth: prudence, ambition, transparency and a long-term view of national development.

For millions of Nigerians, this mission is neither abstract nor distant. It is reflected in expanded access to healthcare, increased opportunities for youth-led innovation, better energy solutions, improved agricultural productivity, new housing options, stronger financial markets and a more responsive national investment framework. The authority’s journey throughout 2025 shows that with sustained commitment and strategic clarity, development institutions can deliver both measurable financial returns and transformative social impact.

As the year closes, the narrative of NSIA’s performance stands as a testament to the power of steady, focused and accountable public investment. The authority’s work offers a reminder that behind every statistic is a family, a community or a business experiencing real change. These stories captured the essence of NSIA’s purpose in 2025—a year of purpose, progress and possibilities.