The Federal government says Nigeria requires an estimated $2.3trn investment over the next 23 years to bridge its huge infrastructure gap.
This is as requested by the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility, UK-NIAF
to assist in providing support to the Ministry to host national and sub-national awareness and sensitization workshops on the Reviewed National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (2020-2043) as the FG-approved vehicle to deliver infrastructure projects in Nigeria.
The support it said was very important and urgent in view of the new political dispensation and to avoid duplication of efforts.
This is contained in a brief for the minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Atiku Bagudu during the visit of the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility, UK-NIAF support for the President Infrastructure Plan to his office on Monday in Abuja.
The Director of the Infrastructure Department of the Ministry, Samuel Nwozuzu, who addressed the visitors said there was also a need for awareness creation by the Minister at the Federal Executive Council and at the National Economic Council on the existence of NIIMP, which is the vehicle for infrastructure project delivery in Nigeria.
He noted that the limited capacity of the MDAs in the identification and packaging of bankable projects still remains an obstacle to infrastructure delivery in Nigeria as it has limited private sector investment in infrastructure development.
He therefore urged NIAF to assist in strengthening the institutional capacity of the Ministry and other relevant MDAs to achieve that purpose.
The Director also called on the NIAF to provide technical and financial support to develop the 2023-2027 NIIMP Implementation Plan which, he said is still outstanding.
He further requested the partnership to provide capacity and another form of assistance to States and FCT to develop the States Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan in line with the State’s priorities and align it with the National objectives in other to ensure seamless effort in Infrastructure planning.
This is even as he appealed for more support for the Ministry to develop a National Infrastructure Register to keep track of national infrastructure stock.
The UK-NIAF visit was a follow-up to the visit of the UK Foreign Secretary to Mr. President on how to work with the Federal government to support the vision for infrastructure delivery which is a critical driver of economic growth and overall development.
In the past, the NIAF has assisted the Federal and State Governments in the areas of capacity building for MDAs in the areas of Public Private Partnership in project development as well as assistance in mobilizing about USD600 million in grants and concessionary funding for a number of critical infrastructure projects among
It has also worked with a range of Federal and selected Sub-National MDAs to develop a decision support tool which the Budget Office of the Federation has adopted to green the project pipelines of infrastructure-focused MDAs in the 2023 Appropriation Act and develop a USD 7.2 billion pipeline of climate-smart infrastructure projects, among others.
The UK-NIAF was established by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) in response to a request made by the Federal Government for support in the provision of technical assistance to enable the country to improve its infrastructure and the quality and reliability of related services.
The goal of the NAIF is to increase access to improved, reliable and affordable infrastructure services in Nigeria by enhancing the government’s capacity to plan, finance and operate infrastructure delivery at the federal and state levels.
NAIF has a broader aim to improve the availability of finance for infrastructure development in particular through public-private partnership (PPP) in infrastructure.
Recall that Nigeria already has a Master Plan for Infrastructure, the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP), which was developed in 2014 through a participatory process involving all relevant stakeholders.
The NIIMP provides an integrated view of infrastructure development in Nigeria, with clear linkages across key sectors and establishes sector targets, priority programs and critical enablers for effective implementation.
As at 2020 when the NIIMP was reviewed, it was estimated that Nigeria will require an investment of USD 2.3 trillion over the next 23 years from 2021 to raise the stock of infrastructure from 30 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to at least 70 percent by 2043.
To meet this target, the sum of USD 150 billion is required annually from 2022 to 2027.
The Public sector is to provide 48 percent of the funds required, while the private sector provides 52 percent.
This is quite huge in view of the lean public sector resources It is believed that the implementation of the Reviewed NIIMP and the National Development Plan will therefore be heavily dependent on a strong partnership between the private and public sectors.
This, experts say will require great emphasis by the Federal government and States on public-private Partnership as a vehicle to bridge the infrastructure funding gap.
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