The Presidency, late Thursday night announced the birth of a Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), to be managed by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA)
The fund, with an initial $650m seed capital to be transferred from the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Dividend Account, has already received the blessing of President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to a statement announcing the establishment of the fund, the “initiative aims to eliminate the risks of project funding, cost variation and completion that have plagued the development of the nation’s critical infrastructure assets — such as the 2nd Niger Bridge, Lagos to Ibadan Expressway, East—West Road, Abuja to Kano Road, Mambilla Hydroelectric Power — over the last few decades.”
The PIDF is expected to secure counterpart funds required for projects being co-developed with China Exim and China Development Banks, and mobilize any additional funding required from development partners.
PIDF had earlier received the approval of the National Economic Council (NEC) at its meeting on Thursday, and would be invested specifically in critical road and power projects across the country.
This commitment by the President and NEC, the statement added, “allows all State Governments to own an economic interest in the project companies that will be professionally developed and managed by the NSIA.
“The investments will yield returns, which will diversify revenues to States, improve the fiscal sustainability profile of the Federation and ensure Nigerians benefit from modernised Infrastructure for decades to come.