Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy, the sixth largest population in the world, and a good country to invest in. According to Wikipedia, as of January 2022, Nigeria had a population of 215 million (approximate) with young people in the 0-14 age group representing 42-54% while the 15-35 age range also represents 36%. The population is estimated to grow to 480 million by the end of the year 2050. This highlights its vast human capital (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Nigeria / https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.TOTL.IN?locations=NG).

Nigeria is endowed with creative, innovative, and hardworking individuals that cut across industries, mostly championing the technology space. The country is one of Africa’s top economies to invest in.

A Land Full of Natural Resources.

Nigeria is one of the countries in the world that is widely rich and diverse in natural resources, with the resources spanning from minerals, petroleum, agriculture, and many others.

These resources cut across the 37 states in the country, and its agriculture and petroleum products are the major primary exports, making it accountable for 90 percent of the country’s exports.

Nigeria first discovered coal in 1909, and more coal was discovered by other explorers in 1918. It is still regarded as one of the best coals in the world because of its low sulphur and ash content, which makes it eco-friendly.

The country has about 3 billion tons of coal preserved, compared to 1.5 million tons of rock salt, one of the most in-demand natural resources. There are 700 million tons of bentonite, 7.5 million tons of barite, 1 billion tons of gypsum, 4 billion tons of talc, and an estimated 10 million tons of zinc, which contains 3 billion tons of iron ore. — Source: https://www.legit.ng/1161400-list-natural-resources-nigeria-locations.html

Nigeria’s FDI Report

Nigeria has the third-highest level of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), making it a great place for investors who access untapped opportunities in which they can invest in.

With its enormous potential for growth in the West African Sub Region and Sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria’s FDI is estimated to grow to over 750 billion USD by the fourth quarter of 2022.

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria attracted a sum of $223.3 million in Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) in the first five months of 2022, between January and May of the year, with a 3.7% increase compared to the $215.3 million recorded in the corresponding period of the previous year.

Nigeria’s GDP Report

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Nigeria was worth 440.78 billion US dollars in 2021, according to official data from the World Bank. Nigeria’s GDP value represents 0.05 percent of the world economy. Source: World Bank

The Benefits of Investing in Nigeria

1. Abundant Resources: As mentioned above, Nigeria has vast human capital resources. There are tremendous investment opportunities that exist in Nigeria’s mineral and agriculture sectors due to the endowment of agricultural, mineral, and petroleum resources.

These resources are conveniently used for the country’s economic purposes through exporting and trading and serve a huge investment turnover, while its booming textile and fabric industries serve a great amount of investment inflow.

Opportunities in Nigeria – Resources and their locations

Agricultural Resources	Location
Cocoa	Edo, Anambra, Imo, Kwara, Ondo, Ogun, Osun,Oyo
Coffee	Kwara, Bauchi, Osun
Cotton	Katsina, Kano, Niger, Kwara, Sokoto
Groundnut	Ebonyi, Katsina, Sokoto, Kano, Niger
Kolanut	Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Kwara
Oil Palm	Akwa Ibom, Imo, Anambra, Oyo, Abia
Plantain	Ogun, Oyo, Osun
Rubber	Delta, Cross River, Ogun, Edo
Sugarcane	Sokoto
Timber	Edo, Ogun, Delta

 

Location	Mineral Resources
Abia	Gold, Lead/Zinc, Limestone, Oil/Gas & Salt
Abuja	Cassiterite, Clay, Dolomite, Gold, Lead/Zinc, Marble & Tantalite
Adamawa	Bentonite, Gypsum, Kaolin & Magnesite
Akwa-Ibom	Clay, Lead/Zinc, Lignite, Limestone, Oil/Gas, Salt & Uranium
Anambra	Clay, Glass-Sand, Gypsum, Iron-ore, Lead/Zinc, Lignite, Limestone, Phosphate & Salt
Bauchi	Gold, Cassiterite (tine ore), Columbite, Gypsum, Wolfram, Coal, Limestone, Lignite, Iron-ore & Clay
Balyesa	Clay, Gypsum, Lead/Zinc, Lignite, Limestone, Manganese, Oil/Gas & Uranium
Benue	Barite, Clay, Coal, Gemstone, Gypsum, Iron-Ore, Lead/Zinc, Limestone, Marble & Salt
Borno	Bentonite, Clay, Diatomite, Gypsum, Hydrocarbon, Kaolin & Limestone
Cross River	Barite, Lead/Zinc, Lignite, Limestone, Manganese, Oil/Gas, Salt & Uranium
Delta	Clay, Glass-sand, Gypsum, Iron-ore, Kaolin, Lignite, Marble & Oil/Gas
Ebonyi	Gold, Lead/Zinc & Salt
Edo	Bitumen, Clay Dolomite, Phosphate, Glass-sand, Gold, Gypsum, Iron-ore, Lignite, Limestone, Marble & Oil/Gas
Ekiti	Feldspar, Granite, Kaolin, Syenite & Titanium
Enugu	Coal, Lead/Zinc & Limestone
Gombe	Gemstone & Gypsium
Imo	Gypsum, Lead/Zinc, Lignite, Limestone, Marcasite, Oil/Gas, Phosphate & Salt
Jigawa	Butyles
Kaduna	Amethyst, Aqua Marine, Asbestos, Clay, Flosper, Gemstone, Gold, Graphite, Kaolin, Hyanite, Mica, Rock Crystal, Ruby, Sapphire, Sihnite, Superntinite, Tentalime, Topaz & Tourmaline
Kano	Cassiterite, Copper, Gemstone, Glass-sand, Lead/Zinc, Pyrochinre & Tantalite
Katsina	Kaolin, Marble & Salt
Kebbi	Gold
Kogi	Cole, Dolomite, Feldspar, Gypsum, Iron-ore, Kaolin, Marble, Talc & Tantalite
Kwara	Cassiterite, Columbite, Feldspar, Gold, Iron-ore, Marble, Mica & Tantalite
Lagos	Bitumen, Clay & Glass-sand
Nasarawa	Amethyst (Topaz Garnet), Barytex, Barite, Cassirite, Chalcopyrite, Clay, Columbite, Coking Coal, Dolomite/Marble, Feldspar, Galena, Iron-ore, Limestone, Mica, Salt, Sapphire, Talc, Tantalite, Tourmaline Quartz & Zireon
Niger	Gold, Lead/Zinc & Talc
Ogun	Bitumen, Clay, Feldspar, Gemstone, Kaolin, Limestone & Phosphate
Ondo	Bitumen, Clay, Coal, Dimension Stones, Feldspar, Gemstone, Glass-Sand, Granite, Gypsum, Kaolin, Limestone & Oil/Gas
Osun	Columbite, Gold, Granite, Talc, Tantalite & Tourmaline
Oyo	Aqua Marine, Cassiterite, Clay, Dolomite, Gemstone, Gold, Kaolin, Marble, Sillimanite, Talc & Tantalite
Plateau	Barite, Bauxite, Bentonite, Bismuth, Cassiterite, Clay, Coal, Emerald, Fluoride, Gemstone, Granite, Iron-ore, Kaolin, Lead/Zinc, Marble, Molybdenite, Pyrochlore, Salt, Tantalite/Columbite, Tin & Wolfram
Rivers	Clay, Glass-Sand, Lignite, Marble & Oil/Gas
Sokoto	Clay, Flakes, Gold, Granite, Gypsum, Kaolin, Laterite, Limestone, Phosphate, Potash, Silica Sand & Salt
Tariba	Lead/Zinc
Yobe	Soda Ash & Tintomite
Zamfara	Coal, Cotton & Gold

 

2. Large Consumer Market: Nigeria has a massive customer base with a population of more than 200 million people, 75% of whom are under the age of 30. Therefore, Nigeria has a very strong domestic industrial sector, which is supported by attractive incentives for investors.

3. Free Market Economy: The government of Nigeria has created an enabling business environment that welcomes and allows investors to thrive. Administrative and bureaucratic procedures have been streamlined, and policies and programs that guarantee a free-market economy exist in Nigeria, making it favourable for industries and businesses.

4. Attractive Incentives: To enhance the free-market economy space in Nigeria, the government has also included attractive incentive packages for private sector investors within and outside the country and access to government funds through the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC). https://www.nipc.gov.ng/government-funds/

5. Fast Growing Economy: In reference to the GDP growth graph above, it is quite notable to see a USD $432.9 billion at the end of Q4 2020 to an increase of USD $440.8 billion at the end of Q4 2021. As of the third quarter of 2022, the GDP remained strong, placing it ahead of two other emerging markets, Brazil and Russia, and just behind India and China. Furthermore, due to its matured industries that are ready for investment, it can also be considered a frontier market.

We have recorded a massive breakthrough in seed funding, and Nollywood is now the third-largest in the movie industry. As a result, the entertainment, music, and media industries, as well as the fintech and telecommunications markets, have grown significantly. Aliko Dangote, the richest man in Africa, has commenced the establishment of the largest oil refinery and seaport in Africa within the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos, which is technically a foreseen home for multiple returns on investment (ROI).

6. Strong Banking & Financial Sector: In Nigeria, there are no issues with your banking and financial needs. It is a huge industry that has enough capabilities and is duly regulated to allow room to exercise all required banking duties from within and outside the country.

7. Strategic Access to ECOWAS and the Rest of Africa: Through programs like the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and ECOWAS, a business located in Nigeria has access to other regional and global markets. Equally, the land borders with Benin, Cameroon, and Chad as well as the 168,000km road network have made accessibility guaranteed for investors in Nigeria.

8. Infrastructure Transformation: Nigeria’s economy has seen a shift from a mono-product economy to an industrialised economy. This is because there have been a lot of structural-developmental changes within the transportation, telecommunication, energy, electricity, and water supply sectors. These are economic drivers that propel Nigeria as an investment-ready country.

9. Commitment to Improving the Business Environment: According to the World Bank in 2020, Nigeria is ranked as one of the 100 countries that have improved the ease of doing business.

The removal of bottlenecks and bureaucratic constraints and the creation of new initiatives and reforms have improved the business environment for doing business in Nigeria. The typical reforms include 48 hours to 5 days for business or company registration; an 80% tariff reduction in the NAFDAC registration fee; and more, making Nigeria one of the best countries in the sub-Saharan.

Via this partnership, professionals in Nigeria and the rest of Africa will have greater access to AGRC’s Level 3 Certificates in AML, KYC/CDD, Compliance, ESG and more.

In an effort to continue its expansion in Africa, the Association of Governance, Risk and Compliance (AGRC), alongside its training partners the London Governance and Compliance Academy (LGCA) and BeyondComply, has penned an agreement with RegTech Africa, an emergent global digital tech media platform with a niche focus on regulatory technology innovations in Africa and around the world, to deliver its Level 3 Certificates in AML, KYC/CDD, ESG Principles & Standards, Compliance, Corporate Governance and Sanctions Compliance to professionals in the region.

As part of this partnership, RegTech Africa will become one of AGRC and LGCA’s official training partners, offering greater accessibility to the association’s professional qualifications and shorter courses to interested professionals in these sectors of growing interest and relevance.

AGRC’s Level 3 Certificates consist of a 15-to-20-hour self-paced, online training programme offered by LGCA, two (2) opportunities to pass AGRC’s certification exam, one (1) year of free membership to the association, and use of the PAGRC acronym as a professional AGRC member upon successful completion of the programme.

Mateo Jarrin Cuvi, who serves as AGRC’s Global Manager for Partners and Media, said: “We are excited about this opportunity to expand our association’s presence in Africa and particularly its largest market. Our goals of offering professionals with affordable and inclusive professional qualifications line up nicely with the needs of the African market, and we believe Regtech Africa will contribute to disseminating these training programmes and help us bolster compliance in the region.”

To further publicize these efforts, AGRC and Regtech Africa will organise a series of promotional and informational events targeting financial institutions, universities, and other organisations that might be looking to train their team members in some of these specific areas. This will include offering the programmes’ extra visibility during Regtech Africa’s annual flagship conference to be held at the end of May in Lagos, Nigeria.

Regtech Africa’s CEO and Publisher, Cyril Okoroigwe, said: “Technology and innovation are essential drivers to tackle poverty, boost growth and achieve sustainable development across Africa. Prioritizing capacity building efforts in Governance, Risk and Compliance is necessary for the continent to benefit from the digital era. We’re therefore thrilled about this partnership and look forward to working with one of the world’s most dynamic and innovative, digital first industry Level 3 Certification brands.”

Nadine Ghosn Eid, Founder of BeyondComply and Member of AGRC’s Advisory Council, concluded: “The RegTech industry has been expanding rapidly in the recent years in view of the constant introduction of rules and regulations that require more involvement of human resources and the workforce in every organisation.  New technologies are now reshaping the whole compliance sector, and it is becoming more and more difficult for organisations to reshape their futures as a result of the rapid change, technological disruption, and unexpected competition. We are very enthusiastic about this collaboration and look forward to supporting compliance professionals in responding to the increasing complexity of their role and building an effective regulatory compliance ecosystem within the whole African continent.”

Regtech Africa’s training academy can be found here: RegTech Africa (lgca.uk)

For more information, please contact:

Mateo Jarrin Cuvi
Global Manager for Partners & Media
The Association of Governance, Risk & Compliance
mateo@agrc.org
+44 7766 169767

Cyril Okoroigwe
CEO & Publisher
Regtech Africa
ocyril@regtechafrica.com

Nadine Ghosn Eid
Founder
BeyondComply
nadinegheid@beyondcomply.com