Nigeria has called on the international community to unlock cheaper and more accessible financing for Africa’s infrastructure and energy development needs.
Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, made the call while speaking at the UN Dialogue on Climate Finance in New York, on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
Oyedele said African countries continue to face what he described as a “prejudice premium” and “narrative cost” when raising funds, despite the continent’s relatively low contribution to global carbon emissions.
According to him, currency risks and what he termed a “stereotype tax” further increase the cost of financing infrastructure, energy and development projects across Africa.
The Minister called for simpler and more affordable climate finance tailored to Africa’s economic realities.
He also advocated increased investment in natural gas and other transition fuels to help address energy poverty, while urging stronger international cooperation to enable countries such as Nigeria to reduce poverty and promote shared prosperity.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has directed Energy China to explore the most practical approach to delivering the long-delayed Mambila Hydropower Project, including the possibility of implementing the project in phases.
The directive follows Nigeria’s victory in the arbitration case involving the Mambila Hydropower Project.
Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, said larger hydropower projects such as Mambila, alongside smaller hydropower schemes serving agricultural corridors, remain central to Nigeria’s medium- and long-term electricity strategy.
Tegbe also disclosed that Nigeria’s recent power mission to China secured commitments from major Chinese companies and financiers to accelerate priority electricity projects.
According to the Minister, Sinomach, CMEC and CNEEC, alongside Chinese financiers, made commitments aimed at advancing Nigeria’s power infrastructure.
CMEC also reaffirmed its role in the 1.9-gigawatt Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), with the first transmission lines expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2027.
The Minister said CNEEC had advanced financing arrangements for the $116 million Zungeru evacuation project.
TBEA, he added, committed to a proposed $500 million industrial park for power-equipment manufacturing in Nigeria, alongside accelerated PPI activities and a three-year delivery pathway for the East-West Super Grid.
HengFei Cables also committed to supplying cables for the second phase of the PPI and proposed establishing a cable assembly plant and training centre in Nigeria.
Tegbe said the initiatives were designed to link power infrastructure development with local manufacturing and technical capacity.
He said the approach would strengthen domestic industrial capabilities while contributing to improved electricity supply across the country.
Share this content:
About The Author
