Stakeholders Advocate for Boosting Local Capital to Fuel Impact Investments in Nigeria
At the 2025 Investors Roundtable in Lagos, key stakeholders from the financial, investment, and development sectors emphasized the importance of harnessing local capital to enhance impact investments in Nigeria. The event, hosted by the Impact Investors Foundation, focused on practical strategies to boost the flow of capital into initiatives addressing global challenges such as poverty, climate change, and healthcare, while ensuring financial sustainability. Participants discussed the critical role of local resources, including pension funds and high-net-worth individuals, in driving impactful investments.
A central theme of the roundtable was the urgent need to shift focus from declining international capital inflows to tapping into Nigeria’s domestic resources. Industry leaders and financial experts highlighted the challenges of attracting local funds, citing systemic barriers and an inefficient regulatory framework. The discussions centered on the necessity for regulatory reforms, particularly in streamlining the fund registration process with the Securities and Exchange Commission, to make Nigeria more attractive for local fund domiciliation.
Keynote speaker Tosin Ojo of Sahel Capital Agribusiness Managers stressed that relying solely on foreign investment is unsustainable. She underscored that for impact investments to thrive, they must be financially viable to attract domestic investors. Participants, including Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes of Aruwa Capital Management, also called for a more streamlined investment process to make it easier for Nigerians to invest locally.
The event, supported by organizations like the Ford Foundation and Wema Bank, also discussed the pivotal role of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria’s economic growth. The stakeholders committed to transforming the insights from the roundtable into actionable policy recommendations and initiatives aimed at improving access to capital for MSMEs, thus promoting sustainable development.
Source: punch