Category: Business Day

Metrospeed Property Development has taken another step towards actualising its smart city project as the Nigerian property developer partners with Future Union, an international firm based in Qatar, to deliver an ambitious urban development modeled after the acclaimed Lusail Smart City in Doha.

The planned collaboration was disclosed recently during a courtesy visit and strategic meeting held at the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) site office for the Metro Smart City project in Lagos, according to a statement.

Leading the Qatari delegation, Abdelgalil Sharaf, Chief Executive Officer of Future Union, said his team was impressed with Metrospeed’s vision and would soon formalize their partnership.

‘We would like to thank you for this invitation today, and we would like to check the project. After that, we will sign the MOU and, Inshallah, go ahead to sign the contract,’ Sharaf said.

Future Union’s International and Regional Director, Maral Godalazian, described Metrospeed’s plans as a beautiful and interesting project.

‘It’s very interesting, especially what we saw with the smart city concept and what you’re planning. It’s beautiful, and I hope we can do anything to make it come to life,’ she said.

Speaking on the significance of the collaboration, Metrospeed Group CEO, Dele Oyefuga said Nigeria stands to benefit from Future Union’s advanced technical expertise, planning capacity, and investment potential. ‘We’re happy to have the Future Union team here in Nigeria, looking forward to bringing investment into the country. They successfully executed Lusail Smart City in Qatar, and we intend to leverage their wealth of experience to bring similar capacity development to Nigeria,’ Oyefuga stated.

He added that the project would redefine urban living in Lagos by promoting ‘good living, fantastic living, and smart living,’ particularly for residents of the state.

‘Once all preparations are completed, we will sign the MOU and the contract for Future Union to bring in their expertise and resources to complement what we’re doing in Nigeria,’ he promised.

Also speaking, Prince Kazeem Eletu-Odibo, the General Manager of Future Union Holdings, Nigeria, and a royal stakeholder in the host community, described the initiative as a ‘generational project’ that fulfills his lifelong dream of transforming Osapa, his ancestral land, into a model smart city.

‘My forefathers have been in this area for over 250 years. I’ve always dreamed of making this place a smart city in Lagos. I went to Qatar, spoke with my partners, and I’m glad they are here to make that dream a reality,’ he said.

Eletu-Odibo also expressed gratitude to the Qatari delegation for their commitment to replicating the Lusail Smart City experience in Nigeria, emphasizing that the project would mark a new era in Lagos’s urban development.

The National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) has unveiled a nationwide greenhouse farming initiative designed to transform vegetable production, empower young agripreneurs, and support women farmers across Nigeria.

Cornelius Adebayo, executive secretary of NALDA, speaking during an inspection visit to the greenhouse complex at the University of Abuja, said the project, approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, seeks to end the country’s dependence on seasonal vegetable farming and improve supply chains.

‘The greenhouse project is in three phases because one of our biggest challenges is overreliance on seasonal production,’ Adebayo said.

‘Mr President graciously approved the establishment of mega high-tech greenhouses across the country to ensure food availability all year round.’

According to him, the initiative involves the construction of three high-tech, temperature-controlled greenhouses in strategic zones nationwide, alongside net-house greenhouses in Abuja and Ogun State.

‘In Giri, Abuja, we have 20 greenhouse units with one nursery, while in Shagamu, Ogun State, there are 30 units and another nursery,’ he explained. ‘Each site has a packing house, cold storage, and solar energy facilities for sustainable operation.’ Adebayo noted that the greenhouse clusters would bring production closer to consumers, cutting transportation costs and post-harvest losses.

‘They are strategically located to serve major markets such as Abuja and Lagos,’ he added. ‘We are also supporting existing greenhouse farmers in Shagamu and Epe to expand capacity.’

Under the youth empowerment component, young farmers will manage the facilities, each operating two net houses as independent agripreneurs supervised by NALDA. ‘The goal is to engage youth productively while boosting food supply,’ Adebayo said. The women’s empowerment segment will focus on open-field vegetable cultivation in every federal constituency. ‘We plan at least 10 hectares per constituency, with 100 women cultivating crops such as pepper, tomatoes, and leafy greens,’ he revealed.

Pilot sites in Cross River, Taraba, Plateau, and Gombe States are already undergoing land clearing and irrigation installation. The Abuja greenhouse facility is scheduled to be fully operational by December 2025, with others to follow in early 2026.

Emphasising safety, Adebayo said greenhouse farming is ‘100% safe and organic,’ adding that the system simply creates optimal atmospheric conditions for plants to thrive.

He clarified that the programme is not a loan scheme, but a government-backed empowerment initiative aimed at removing infrastructural barriers that hinder smallholder farmers.

‘At NALDA, our role is to provide the enabling environment for agriculture to thrive. Once infrastructure is in place, farmers will do the rest,’ he said.

Adebayo further disclosed that at least 10 young farmers will manage the first 20 greenhouses in Abuja, with expansion plans to 50 units in Abuja and Shagamu. He also appealed to state governments and local communities to provide more land for project scaling.

Highlighting its economic impact, Adebayo said the greenhouse clusters will help stabilise vegetable prices through coordinated offtake and production planning. ‘With structured clusters, we can influence price stability without enforcing price controls,’ he explained.

He concluded that the initiative supports NALDA’s broader goal to decentralise food production, reduce post-harvest losses, and promote urban agriculture near major cities.

‘As the giant of Africa, we must produce our vegetables year-round. This project ensures that fresh, affordable produce is always within reach,’ Adebayo said.

The NALDA Greenhouse Project will produce tomatoes, peppers, avocados, and other vegetables, offering training opportunities for interested youths in partnership with universities and agricultural institutions.

The Senate on Wednesday ordered a comprehensive investigation into Nigeria’s aviation sector following a series of disturbing air incidents that have raised fresh concerns over passenger safety and regulatory oversight.

Lawmakers unanimously resolved to empower the Senate Committee on Aviation to probe the root causes of the frequent runway accidents and safety lapses plaguing the industry.

The committee is expected to engage key aviation agencies and submit its findings within four weeks.

The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Abdulfatai Buhari (Oyo North), who cited the recent Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) report on the June 22, 2025, Air Peace runway overrun at the Port Harcourt International Airport.

Though no lives were lost, Buhari said the findings revealed ‘critical gaps in safety standards, infrastructure management, and operational compliance,’ warning that such systemic failures could have catastrophic consequences if left unaddressed.

‘Aviation safety is not negotiable. The NSIB report shows systemic failures that must be urgently fixed to safeguard lives and restore confidence in our airports,’ he declared.

Buhari expressed alarm that no fewer than seven runway-related incidents had been recorded in 2025 alone, calling for immediate enforcement of NSIB’s safety recommendations and stricter monitoring by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

In a shocking revelation, Orji Uzor Kalu, former Abia State governor and ex-airline owner, alleged that some pilots operate flights under the influence of drugs.

‘Some of them smoke Indian hemp like cigarettes,’ Kalu claimed, urging regulators to conduct spot drug tests and routine health checks on flight crews. He accused aviation authorities of negligence, saying: ‘Nobody checks their blood pressure or drug levels before they fly. I have seen pilots I told to go home because they were not normal that day.’

Kalu also lamented the poor condition of runways across Nigerian airports, describing them as unsafe and riddled with potholes.

‘The runways must undergo quarterly maintenance. When they are neglected, pilots are forced to dodge potholes mid-landing. That is unacceptable,’ he added.

Several lawmakers, including Senator Danjuma Goje (Gombe Central) and Senator Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North), supported the motion but cautioned against sensationalism that could heighten public fear.

Goje said, ‘Aviation is a matter of life and death. The committee must do a thorough oversight and ensure compliance with global safety standards. This is not something to treat lightly.’ The Senate also adopted an additional prayer urging the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development to fast-track the construction of a second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, to ease congestion and enhance operational safety.

Jibrin Barau, the Deputy Senate President, who presided over the session, described the motion as ‘timely and crucial,’ emphasising that the nation’s aviation sector ‘cannot be handled with levity.’

He commended the Committee on Aviation, led by Buhari, for its diligence and tasked it to ‘do a thorough job that will restore safety, sanity, and public confidence in Nigeria’s airspace.’

Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, former vice president of Nigeria, has highlighted that delays in commercial disputes could take nearly 13 years or more from filing to final Supreme Court judgement which is bad for business and investment.

Such delays could also attracting global criticism.

In a compelling address at AELEX law firm’s 19th annual lecture titled: ‘Rule of Law and Economic Development: The Nigerian Experience’, the former vice president dissected the root causes of Nigeria’s sluggish investment climate, drawing connections between judicial inefficiency, policy inconsistency, and economic stagnation.

He mapped a pragmatic path forward: efficiency, digital reform, institutional discipline, and people-centred governance.

Delayed justice system

Speaking on broader commercial disputes, Osinbajo presented fresh findings from the Justice Research Institute, which he described as staggering. According to the report, ‘a commercial case sits in the high court for between four years and two months. If appealed, it will spend another three years and four months in the court of appeal. And if it goes on to the Supreme Court, it takes another six years and six months more to conclude.’

He summed it up saying, ‘Altogether, a commercial dispute can take nearly 13 years from filing to final Supreme Court judgment.’

He also recalled a 2015 case before the UK Court of Appeal involving the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), where the court referred to the delays in the Nigerian court as catastrophic. saying it could take a further 30 years to resolve the case.’

Speaking from experience, he outlined practical reforms to restore confidence in governance, strengthen investor trust, and refocus policy on citizens’ welfare.

The landlord’s dilemma: When delayed justice kills investment

Osinbajo began by recounting a troubling trend in Lagos when investors were turning away from property development and channelling funds into stocks and bonds instead.

‘They were preferring to invest in stocks and bonds rather than building houses for rent,’ he said, explaining that ‘many landlords simply lost confidence in the courts.’

The reason was simple but devastating. ‘The magistrate court process was painfully slow. Tenants would often pay for a couple of years, three years’ rent in advance, and then stop paying, betting that if the landlord sued, the case would drag on for years while the tenants stayed rent-free.’

To address the crisis, Osinbajo and his team launched mediation centres under the Lagos State Citizens’ Rights Project, providing faster and fairer resolutions.

‘We enlisted trained volunteer mediators, most of them lawyers in the Ministry of Justice. In one year, the mediation centres resolved over 8,000 landlord and tenant cases, whereas the magistrate court had completed only 2,000 within the same year.’

Sanctions, costs and court discipline

To reverse this decay, Osinbajo advocated for adverse and heavy sanctions and court discipline.

He recounted a personal experience from his advisory days at the Ministry of Justice, ‘The court fined us about £200,000 for just being late. It’s only heavy costs, in my opinion, that will discourage non-results.’ That, he said, was an effective deterrent.

Open, digital scheduling and case tracking

He further recommended the creation of specialised commercial courts and the digitisation of court processes.

‘It’s no longer rocket science,’ he said pointedly. ‘Everyone else everywhere else is doing all these things. Open, digital scheduling and case tracking, would curb corruption and increase transparency’.

Discouraging the interference of courts with arbitration proceedings

Osinbajo also criticised the tendency of Nigerian courts to interfere with arbitration proceedings, warning that it undermines an essential mechanism for quick dispute resolution. ‘The moment a court gets into arbitration, it means that the entire alternative dispute resolution method is drawn into the slow judicial process,’ he cautioned.

Referring to conflicting appellate judgments on the issue, he emphasised that ‘we must, as a matter of legal policy, discourage even more intensely the interference of courts with arbitration, except in the most extreme and urgent cases.’

Encouraging early enforcements of judgements and bureaucracy

Even after litigants secure a judgment, Osinbajo observed that enforcement remains a major hurdle.

He also lamented the difficulty of enforcing judgments against government entities, pointing to Section 84 of the Sheriff and Civil Processes Act, which requires the Attorney General’s consent before enforcement.

‘That consent is unlikely to ever come. There are far too many bureaucratic inefficiencies, procedural complexities, a lack of cooperation sometimes from law enforcement agents. Enforcements are abandoned because of the high cost and the low success rate’, he said.

Policy continuity to increase investor confidence

Osinbajo then turned to another major deterrent to investment: policy inconsistency. ‘Study after study has shown that when you have policy reversals, it generally hampers investment for local and foreign direct investment,’ he said.

From sudden bans on agricultural imports to erratic telecoms regulations, he argued, such unpredictability regularly affects expansion plans.

He therefore called for institutional reforms and cross-party collaboration to ensure continuity. ‘There should be stakeholder consultations before policy shifts,’ he advised. ‘We can also create a national investment channel and get cross-party support. making it more difficult for government to arbitrarily abandon what its predecessors have done.’

People-centred development and the duty of the state

At the heart of his address was a moral and economic argument: development must serve people, not just profit. ‘The business of government, the fundamental business of government, is the security and welfare of the people,’ he reminded his audience.

Osinbajo rejected the trickle-down development model, asserting that ‘the bottom of the pyramid is too large for us to ignore.’ With nearly 70 per cent of Nigerians under 25, he warned that ‘the failure to address these needs will threaten security, which means it will threaten economic development.’

‘By putting ordinary people first,’ he said, ‘by expanding opportunity at the bottom of the pyramid, we can make our society more stable and growth more sustainable.’

A call for collaborative reform

Osinbajo noted that Nigeria’s problems are not of lack of policy or laws, but of weak execution and human failure. ‘We must reduce human discretion in the operation of our regulatory agencies,’ he urged.

He called for a ‘meeting of the minds’ between the executive, legislature, and judiciary, alongside the private sector, to drive reform. ‘Every problem is human. Each of these sectors must see how one failure affects the others and decide to collaborate intentionally to deliver economic development.’

As global supply chains fracture and reconfigure under the weight of geopolitical tensions, climate imperatives, and digital disruption, Nigeria finds itself at a strategic crossroads. The 2025 Nigeria Supply Chain Leadership Summit (NSCLS) arrives not as a ceremonial gathering, but as a high-stakes intervention-designed to chart a new course for Africa’s most populous nation and its regional partners.

The summit’s keynote theme, ‘Africa Supply Chain Renaissance: Nigeria’s Path Forward,’ delivered by Dr Alban Igwe, DG, Dangerous Goods Academy, sets the tone for a continental awakening. His address will explore how Nigeria can leverage policy reforms, digital transformation, and strategic partnerships to modernise its supply chain ecosystem-unlocking efficiency, reducing costs, and catalysing trade and investment across borders. Dr. Igwe’s roadmap includes strategic levers for transformation such as infrastructure, technology, skills, and financing, alongside Nigeria’s evolving role in AfCFTA and regional integration.

Mr. Adeola Oduntan, GM -Global Sourcing and Supply Chains at MTN Nigeria, will tackle one of the summit’s most urgent questions: ‘Nigeria at the Crossroads-Protectionism or Pan-African Trade Integration?’ His keynote will dissect the tension between safeguarding local industries and embracing regional competitiveness under AfCFTA. With MTN’s procurement transformation as a backdrop, Oduntan will offer a nuanced view of how businesses can navigate policy trade-offs while positioning Nigeria as both a national and continental powerhouse.

The concept of glocalisation-strategically adapting global practices to local realities-will be explored in depth by two influential voices. Ms Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice President at Afreximbank, will discuss the institutional and financial dimensions of glocalisation, drawing on her leadership in advancing intra-African trade and industrialisation. Her perspective will highlight how regional value chains can be strengthened through policy harmonisation, trade finance, and strategic partnerships.

Joining her is Mr. Greg Akhibi, Chief Procurement Officer at Renaissance Africa Energy Corporation, who will examine glocalisation through the lens of energy and infrastructure. His address will spotlight how African industries can balance global standards with indigenous strengths-especially in the Energy and Energy services industry. Together, their insights promise a strategic roadmap for building competitive, inclusive, and sustainable regional value chains.

NSCLS is not designed for passive listening. Its architecture blends keynote provocations with practitioner-led case studies, regulatory deep dives, and investor roundtables. The goal is to move from ideas to execution, from policy to practice. Whether it’s rethinking port logistics, scaling e-commerce platforms, or embedding ESG principles in regional supply chains, the summit offers a rare opportunity to co-create solutions that are scalable, sovereign, and systemically sound.

At the heart of this initiative is a commitment to legacy-driven impact. The summit’s convener, Emeka Eboagwu, has long championed the strategic alignment of global best practices with local realities. His work across Banking, Oil and Gas, infrastructure, Sustainability and regional integration reflects a deep commitment to empowering stakeholders and building capacity for systemic change. The NSCLS reflects that ethos-designed not only to convene, but also to catalyse.

The NSCLS event is billed to hold on the 14th of November, 2025, at the Radisson Blu, Anchorage, Victoria Island Lagos, Nigeria

In a world where supply chains are no longer back-office functions but front-page headlines, NSCLS offers Nigeria a chance to lead with purpose, precision, and partnership within the emerging African supply chain ecosystem.

DHL Group (DHL) has announced a pound 300+ million (about N508billion) planned investment in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), reaffirming its long-term commitment to a region of growing strategic importance in global trade.

The multi-year initiative will be deployed across DHL Express, DHL Global Forwarding, and DHL Supply Chain to expand infrastructure, enhance service capabilities, and unlock opportunities for businesses across key sectors including e-commerce, perishables, energy, and life sciences and healthcare.

‘Africa is at a pivotal moment in its trade journey,’ said John Pearson, CEO of DHL Express. ‘Despite global volatility, the continent continues to show resilience and momentum. Our investment reflects confidence in Africa’s trajectory and DHL’s commitment to enabling the trade flows that drive inclusive growth. By strengthening our network and capabilities, we aim to make it easier for African businesses, from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to large corporates, to compete on the world stage.’

Africa’s trade opportunity is rising as regional integration gathers pace. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is creating a continental market that can deepen intra-African commerce and open new corridors with the rest of the world. Progress depends on continued improvements in infrastructure and trade facilitation, but cross-border flows have remained resilient and African enterprises are increasingly connecting to global value chains.

According to the latest update of the DHL Global Connectedness Tracker, Sub-Saharan Africa led all world regions in the first half of 2025 with a 10 percent year-on-year (YoY) increase in trade value (in current US dollars), ahead of North America at 7percent and South and Central America, Caribbean at 5percent. Current forecasts as of September 2025 indicate the region’s trade volume will grow by an average of 4.3percent per year over 2025 to 2029, the second-fastest globally behind South and Central Asia.

Across DHL Express, the investment will include upgrading gateways, adding aviation uplift and extending time-definite coverage into second cities that are emerging as demand centres under AfCFTA. As the only integrator with a dedicated air network in Sub-Saharan Africa, Express will link these cities more tightly to Africa-Europe and Africa-Asia lanes, building on recent growth in Ethiopia and Nigeria.

With unrivalled coverage across all African markets, DHL Group remains uniquely positioned to connect the continent to the world and enable the next chapter of its growth.

Hennie Heymans, CEO, DHL Express Sub-Saharan Africa said, ‘Our focus is to be closer to customers and make cross-border shipping simpler and more reliable. As trade expands, businesses are asking for predictable transit times, consistent delivery performance and support that understands local conditions. By raising the bar on service and proximity, we will help more African companies trade efficiently and compete on a bigger stage.’

DHL Global Forwarding will focus its investment on strengthening key industry solutions that are driving Africa’s trade growth. The division is expanding its capabilities in energy and industrial projects, supporting Africa’s role in the global energy transition; enhancing cold-chain and perishables logistics for agriculture and horticulture exporters; and scaling its expertise in life sciences and healthcare with specialized temperature-controlled transport. These enhancements build on DHL’s established freight forwarding network and customs expertise across major African trade lanes connecting the continent with Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Amadou Diallo, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Middle East and Africa, added: ‘Customers are navigating shifting trade patterns and tighter regulatory requirements, so reliability and visibility matter more than ever. We are strengthening forwarding solutions with deeper local expertise and enhanced digital tools, giving clients clearer control of their shipments from origin to destination. The goal is straightforward: keep goods moving predictably and help customers capture growth where demand is emerging.’

DHL Supply Chain will add capacity and transport-led solutions with a clear focus on the transporter sector and life sciences and healthcare, including additional temperature-sensitive capability to support critical healthcare flows and fast-moving fulfilment as supply chains mature, particularly as demand for third party logistics services continues to grow in the core South African market.

Orkun Saruhanoglu, CEO, DHL Supply Chain Middle East and Africa, said: ‘DHL Supply Chain is expanding in South Africa as the economy gains momentum and supply chains become more sophisticated. We are seeing growing demand for specialised, outsourced logistics, particularly in life sciences and healthcare and across the transporter sector. By adding capacity, strengthening transport-led solutions and applying our contract logistics expertise, we will help customers improve service quality, manage risk and scale with confidence.’

DHL is investing in programmes that extend participation in trade and support sustainable growth. Through its GoTrade initiative, the company provides SMEs with training and customs expertise to access international markets. In addition, the business is piloting renewable energy and alternative fuel projects across its facilities in Sub-Saharan Africa and advancing digitalization through AI-enabled monitoring, route optimization, and digital customs tools to reduce friction in cross-border trade.

The Benue Digital Infrastructure Company (BDIC) has taken a leading role in Nigeria’s efforts to reform Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) apprenticeship systems, aimed to bridge the country’s skills gap and promote sustainable economic growth.

Consequently, the BDIC has engaged key players, including the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, the German Development Agency (GIZ), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and the International Labour Organization (ILO) to help modernise apprenticeship frameworks to meet digital economy demands.

Gbande-Hembaor Terwase, CEO/Managing Director of BDIC, represented by Owoicho Igoji, his Chief of Staff and Special Adviser,

at the ongoing Multi-Stakeholder National Public Dialogue in Abuja,emphasised the urgent need to integrate digital skills training into traditional apprenticeships to tackle youth unemployment and skill mismatches.

‘Nigeria’s future lies in equipping its youth with digital and technical skills that can drive innovation, create jobs, and attract global investment.

‘Nigeria’s apprenticeship system faces long-standing challenges such as informal training structures, lack of standardised curricula and insufficient funding, which hinder youth access to quality, industry-relevant training.

‘The reform efforts seek to harmonise apprenticeship training with emerging sectors like ICT and renewable energy, positioning TVET as a key driver of socio-economic development.

‘BDIC is playing a pivotal role in this transformation by collaborating with the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) to develop specialised training modules and innovation labs.

‘These initiatives equip apprentices with the technical skills necessary for emerging industries while advocating for standardised certification and sustainable programme funding.

‘This leadership follows BDIC’s recent recognition at the 2025 Bureau of Public Sector Reform (BPSR) and GovTech Awards, where it won Best State ICT Agency and its CEO and my boss, Gbande-Hembaor Terwase, received the Trailblazer Award for visionary digital governance.

‘These accolades affirm BDIC’s growing influence in national policy and its success in driving digital infrastructure development’, Igoji said on behalf of Terwase.

Speaking further, Terwase stressed that integrating ICT tools and digital skills into apprenticeships is essential for sustainable job creation and Nigeria’s global competitiveness. BDIC is building a resilient digital backbone to support TVET programme delivery, assessment and certification nationwide.

Meanwhile, the industry experts and development partners, have commended BDIC’s approach as a model for leveraging technology to align workforce development with the realities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

BDIC’s efforts are seen as a strategic pivot towards inclusive economic empowerment that can transform Nigeria’s apprenticeship landscape, improve youths employment outcomes and enhance productivity for national growth.

Health is wealth. For Nigeria, this is no longer just a slogan but an urgent national imperative. The healthcare sector sits at the intersection of social well-being and economic growth. It is where lives can be saved, productivity expanded, and billions of dollars in investment unlocked. What is required? With the right vision and execution, Nigeria’s next economic ‘unicorn’ may well be born not from fintech or oil, but from healthcare.

Nigeria’s healthcare system remains dangerously overstretched. The doctor-to-patient ratio stands at 1:5,000, far above the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation of 1:600. Fewer than 10 percent of Nigerians have health insurance, leaving households exposed to catastrophic out-of-pocket payments. Over 70 percent of health spending comes directly from families, and the country loses more than $1 billion annually to medical tourism.

Public financing remains among the weakest globally. Nigeria spends an estimated $30 per capita annually on health, one of the lowest in the world. The Coordinating Minister of Health, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, has acknowledged decades of underinvestment but insists reforms are underway to expand insurance coverage, revitalise primary healthcare, and strengthen transparency and accountability. This underscores the urgency of repositioning healthcare not merely as a social service, but as a core pillar of economic competitiveness.

And yet, the potential is vast. According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Nigeria’s life sciences sector, currently valued at $46 billion, could double by 2030. This expansion could generate $1.6 billion in new investment and create nearly 50,000 jobs. The Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain (PVAC) has already set targets: reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imported medical products from 70 percent to 30 percent by 2030, expand local pharmaceutical and device manufacturing, and position health as a driver of economic resilience.

These are not mere aspirations. They are achievable goals if matched with bold policy, private-sector partnership, and consistent execution and monitoring.

Learning from local success stories

Before looking abroad, Nigeria must acknowledge its own success stories. They prove that with the right models, healthcare can be both impactful and profitable.

Garki Hospital, Abuja: Once a moribund public facility, it was transformed under a concession with Nisa Premier Hospital into a thriving 24/7 operation. In a decade, it remitted nearly ?200 million to government coffers, invested ?4.6 billion in equipment, and pioneered the first sleeve gastrectomy in Sub-Saharan Africa. A model of how public-private partnerships (PPPs) can turn state liabilities into productive assets.

Lagoon Hospitals (Iwosan Group): Nigeria’s first private hospital to perform open-heart surgery, achieve Joint Commission International accreditation, and deploy full electronic medical records across its facilities. These are global standards achieved locally.

Delta State Access to Finance (A2F) Scheme: Another notable case is Delta State’s Access to Finance (A2F) Scheme, developed through a partnership between the Delta State Contributory Health Commission, PharmAccess, and the Healthcare Federation of Nigeria (HFN). By blending state policy with private-sector financing and expertise, the initiative revitalised primary healthcare centres across underserved communities. The result has been not only improved service delivery but also expanded healthcare access for more than 1.2 million residents, evidence that structured collaboration can extend the reach of care far beyond the limits of government budgets.

These examples show that innovation, partnership, and investment are not only possible but already underway. The challenge is scale.

Lessons from abroad

Around the world, countries that once struggled with weak public systems have unlocked growth by engaging the private sector intelligently:

India: Nearly 70 percent of healthcare delivery is private, with over 60 percent of infrastructure in private hands. Instead of competing, the government created the Ayushman Bharat (PM-JAY) insurance scheme, which channels public subsidies into private clinics, expanding universal coverage and easing strain on state hospitals. In 2023 alone, healthcare and pharma attracted $5.5 billion in private equity and venture capital.

Cambodia: Since 1998, the government has contracted private providers to deliver public healthcare, combining flexibility with oversight.

Brazil: São Paulo dramatically reduced morbidity and increased coverage by contracting nonprofit private bodies to deliver primary healthcare.

These global lessons are instructive: private healthcare, when properly regulated, becomes a national asset, not a competitor to public provision.

The cautionary fine print

Nigeria must also tread carefully. Private equity in healthcare is a double-edged sword. Studies in the United States have found that some PE-acquired hospitals experienced higher complication rates, more infections, and significantly increased charges. Patients bore the cost of profit-driven efficiency. Yet the same studies acknowledge that many of these hospitals were financially failing and would have collapsed without private capital. The lesson is clear: investment must come with strong quality safeguards, pricing transparency, and accountability mechanisms. Profit and impact can align-but only under robust regulation.

This was echoed at the 2025 National Health Financing Policy Dialogue, where stakeholders warned that Nigeria’s health crisis is not only about insufficient funds but also about inefficient allocation and weak accountability. Transparent financial management, stronger state-level oversight, and digital data systems were highlighted as vital to restoring public trust.

Why the Nigerian Government should bet on private healthcare

The arguments for action are overwhelming:

? Government budgets alone cannot sustain healthcare.

? Importing basic supplies like oxygen is unsustainable and embarrassing.

? Philanthropy cannot substitute for structured financing and is not sustainable.

? Self-sufficiency in medical manufacturing will create jobs, attract investment, and reduce costs.

? Human capital development in healthcare requires private investment-mirroring how Nigerian banks built training schools to expand capacity. Already, Lily Hospitals has established a private nursing school, while Iwosan Lagoon and First Cardiology are partnering with teaching hospitals to build specialist capacity.

In short, healthcare must be treated as both a social good and an economic growth strategy.

Healthcare Federation of Nigeria recommendations: Policies that fuel private healthcare growth

For Nigeria to unlock this potential, the government must:

Expand and professionalise PPPs: Use Garki Hospital as a flagship, not an outlier. Create enforceable, transparent contracts with clear remittance goals, performance targets, and accountability covenants.

Simplify regulation: Eliminate bottlenecks in licensing, approvals, and importation. PVAC’s quarterly consultative forums with businesses should be institutionalised into law.

Scale insurance penetration: Link the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) with digital ID systems and subsidise premiums for informal workers. This aligns with the NHIA’s recognition that insurance represents the strongest form of solidarity. Nigeria’s target of enrolling 44 million citizens by 2030 underscores both the urgency and the opportunity for scale.

Incentivise local production: Provide tax breaks, low-cost land, and research partnerships with universities to seed pharmaceutical and device manufacturing clusters.

Embed quality standards: Require private hospitals and clinics to meet accreditation benchmarks. Make performance metrics public to ensure accountability.

Classify healthcare as infrastructure: This will enable access to long-term, lower-interest financing, as India and Singapore have done.

Innovate in financing: Develop blended finance models, credit guarantees, Naira-based patient capital, and health impact bonds that attract donor and private funding while tying outcomes to measurable health gains.

Celebrate success: Spotlight models like Lagoon, Garki, and Delta State’s A2F scheme to attract more investors and strengthen trust in the sector.

The stakes for Nigeria

Why should the government act decisively now? Because the cost of inaction is already too high. A population of over 200 million cannot continue with a healthcare system that leaves most uninsured, underserved, and dependent on medical tourism. Because the economic opportunity is too large to ignore: $1.6 billion in new investment and 50,000 new jobs by 2030. And because health is not only about healing bodies-it is about securing Nigeria’s competitiveness, productivity, and national confidence.

The lesson from both homegrown models and international experience is clear: healthcare thrives when policy enables private investment while protecting patients. This is the balance Nigeria must now achieve.

Tomorrow is not guaranteed. The time to act is now.

This article is a partnership between the Healthcare Federation of Nigeria (HFN) and BusinessDay to highlight policies and programmes to promote the rebuilding of Nigeria’s health sector. As a private sector-led coalition, HFN advocates for policies and partnerships to strengthen healthcare delivery. This partnership aims to spark meaningful discussions and drive transformative change in Nigeria’s health sector.

Fembol Group, one of the fastest-growing logistics companies in Nigeria, has been recognized as the Highest Volume Customer for APM Terminals Rail Product 2025, an acknowledgment that underscores the company’s commitment to efficient logistics, operational excellence, and reliable cargo movement across Nigeria.

APM Terminals, the largest seaport terminal operator in Nigeria and a global leader in port logistics, presented the award to Fembol representatives – Blessing Peter, Emmanuel Ogunrinde, and Olaide Olujimi – in recognition of the company’s exceptional performance and contribution to the growth of the rail logistics sector.

Receiving the recognition on behalf of the company, Oluwafemi Bewaji, Managing Director, Fembol Group, noted that the award reflects the company’s strategic investment in innovation, technology, and customer-focused logistics solutions.

‘This recognition is more than a milestone; it’s a testament to our commitment to providing seamless, end-to-end logistics for our clients. At Fembol, we’re not just moving cargo, we’re driving efficiency and building stronger supply chains across Nigeria,’ he said.

Fembol has continued to lead in integrated logistics, offering services that span project shipping, customs brokerage, haulage, documentation, and railway delivery, connecting international trade partners to Nigerian industries with reliability and speed.

The award reinforces Fembol’s position as one of the key players shaping the future of logistics in Nigeria’s fast-growing trade environment.

Nigeria has continued to strengthen its international economic leadership, with the country set to assume the chairmanship of the Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four (G-24) on November 1, 2025.

The announcement followed high-level engagements led by Olayemi Cardoso, Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and Doris Uzoka-Anite, Minister of State for Finance, at the ongoing IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington D.C.

The G-24, which brings together emerging and developing countries to coordinate positions on global monetary and financial issues, serves as a vital platform for promoting inclusive growth and fair representation within the international financial system.

Nigeria will take over from Argentina as chair, marking a renewed era of leadership for Africa’s largest economy in multilateral economic dialogue. Speaking at the meeting, Cardoso disclosed that Nigeria’s trade surplus has risen to 6 percent of GDP, reflecting the impact of sustained macroeconomic reforms and improved investor confidence. He emphasized that Nigeria’s policy direction under the Tinubu administration has focused on restoring discipline, transparency, and credibility in monetary and fiscal management.

‘Our focus remains on ensuring that Nigeria’s reforms translate into real growth for our people. Stability is not just a policy goal, it is the foundation for lasting progress,’ Cardoso said.

On Nigeria’s assumption of the G-24 chairmanship, the CBN Governor, speaking on behalf of Wale Edun, the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening collaboration among member countries and advancing policies that promote inclusive and sustainable growth.

‘We are determined to ensure that the G-24 continues to be a strong platform for representing the shared interests of emerging and developing economies. Our focus will be on sustaining momentum in areas that matter most to our members, growth, equity, and global stability,’ he added.