Despite recent economic reforms, persistent governance failures are frustrating Nigeria’s efforts to mobilise development finance, African Development Bank’s newly released 2025 Nigeria Country Focus Report, said.
The report, launched in Abuja on Thursday and titled “Making Nigeria’s Capital Work Better for Its Development”, paints a bleak picture of Nigeria’s ability to attract and effectively use domestic resources to fund national development.
It noted that fragmented regulatory oversight, overlapping institutional mandates, and limited coordination among government bodies have continued to erode public trust and discourage investment.
“Governance and institutional shortfalls further complicate the domestic resource mobilisation landscape, impeding Nigeria’s ability to capitalise on its wealth.
“Fragmented regulatory oversight, overlapping jurisdictions between federal and subnational entities, and pervasive corruption have eroded public trust and discouraged both domestic and foreign investment.
“These constraints not only widen the development finance gap but also stunt the broader economic transformation process. Tackling them requires a strategic overhaul — streamlining administrative processes, enforcing robust anti-corruption measures, developing digital infrastructure, and reinforcing the rule of law,” the report said.
The findings come at a time when Nigeria is pursuing bold policy changes, including fuel subsidy removal, exchange rate unification and tax restructuring.
However, the report warns that without strong institutions and governance frameworks, these reforms risk losing momentum.
Nigeria is currently facing an annual development financing gap of $31.5bn if it is to meet its Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
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