Nigeria has appealed to the African Development Bank (AfDB) for support in financing Phase II of the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) and the Green Legacy Initiative.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima made the request during a bilateral meeting with AfDB President, Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, on the sidelines of the 80th UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
SAPZ Phase II aims to expand climate-resilient infrastructure and agro-industrial growth to 24 additional states, up from the initial eight and the FCT, with the goal of diversifying Nigeria’s economy and boosting value-added agricultural exports.
“Nigeria has the agro-ecological potential to grow virtually anything, from the mangroves in the South to the Sahel in the North,” Shettima said, urging AfDB to scale up its $300m support to the project. He also called for investment in innovation-driven enterprises and the digital economy, noting that Nigeria is home to five of Africa’s eight unicorns.
Responding, Dr. Tah pledged AfDB’s commitment, saying his vision is to make the bank a catalyst for mobilising global capital to accelerate Africa’s transformation.
Earlier, Shettima also met with the Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr. Terrance Drew, with both leaders vowing to deepen economic and cultural ties between Africa and the Caribbean.
