LocationsBROKERING PRIVATE SECTOR INVESTMENTS FOR THE SDGs: $15 MILLION INVESTMENTS MOBILIZED FOR HEALTHCARE AND AGRITECH SMEs IN NIGERIA
April 26, 2024
Abuja– 26 April 2024 - The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Nigeria, the UNDP Sustainable Finance Hub (SFH) in collaboration with the Government of Nigeria and the European Union (EU) is pleased to announce the successful facilitation of investments totalling USD 15 million for three (3) ground-breaking enterprises in Nigeria that are contributing towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This achievement marks a significant milestone in advancing sustainable development through private sector contributions.
The attainment of the SDGs necessitates mobilizing private capital that contributes to development needs in the country. This calls for collaborative efforts to identify bankable and impactful investment opportunities, manage risks, and facilitate private sector investments into sectors with the most significant impact. It also involves bridging the gap between the demand and supply of capital by building a pipeline of bankable SDG-aligned investment opportunities across priority sectors.
Identified and developed by operationalizing the products and services of the UNDP SFH Private Sector Offer financed through the Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) Phase II programme, EHA Clinics, Vittas International, and Agriarche who have so far emerged as beneficiaries of this transformative initiative, have attracted private sector investments, totalling USD 15 million, from impact investors, commercial banks, capital markets and angel investors.
This serves as a proof of concept of implementation of the SFH private sector offer regarding the potential of advancing private sector participation towards the SDGs, by investing in commercially viable solutions that also advance development objectives. Through a highly competitive process initiated in 2023, the collaborative work identified impact-driven investment opportunities worth USD 175 million in 25 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) across sectors identified as critical development enablers through the Nigeria SDG Investor Map, such as healthcare, services, agriculture, renewable energy, amongst others. The programme provided transaction advisory and capacity strengthening to selected enterprises to integrate sustainability at the core of their business practices while connecting them to a network of domestic and international private sector investors that would otherwise have been difficult to access.
Ms. Elsie G. Attafuah, Resident Representative at UNDP Nigeria, expressed her excitement about the quality of innovations coming out of Nigeria’s ecosystem. She stressed that “Nigeria’s entrepreneurial landscape presents a wealth of untapped opportunities ripe for investments. From tech start-ups to healthcare and agribusinesses, the diverse market offers boundless opportunities for visionary investors seeking not just financial returns, but long term social and environmental value creation”. She called on investors to seize the moment, and harness the potential, to become part of Nigeria's journey towards social, environmental, and economic prosperity.
Ms. Attafuah further extended her profound gratitude for the unwavering support of the European Union, through the ongoing Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) Phase II programme and reaffirmed UNDP’s commitment to fostering sustainable development in Nigeria. The INFF as an umbrella allows the smooth implementation of UNDP SFH’s private and public sector workstreams and is poised to unlocked innovative public and private sector financing across the country.
The three (3) ventures selected, EHA (renowned for their comprehensive primary healthcare services), Vittas International (a leading provider of digital lending tools for healthcare financing) and Agriarche (building a cutting-edge blend of agriculture, technology, and finance, providing visibility and transparency to the flow of commodities in the agricultural value chain) are poised to revolutionize healthcare delivery, agriculture, and financial inclusion across Nigeria with their innovative approaches and unwavering commitment to sustainable development.
Mr. Emmanuel Etaherdi, the Executive Secretary of the Financial Centre for Sustainability (FC4S), Lagos, added that “FC4S Lagos is excited to have had the unwavering support and collaboration of UNDP Nigeria, the FC4S Network leadership and other key partners that have enabled this landmark achievement. This achievement is at the core of what we seek to accomplish as a Financial Centre - connecting climate-resilient and SDGs-Aligned Projects to financing to enable them scale up, become success stories and reference points for other aspiring SMEs in Nigeria."
The collaboration with FC4S and other key partners underscores UNDP's commitment to fostering sustainable development and promoting inclusive economic growth, in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Leveraging expertise of UNDP’s SFH, Africa Sustainable Finance Hub (ASFH), the Financial Centre for Sustainability (FC4S), and the Impact Investment Exchange (IIX), UNDP Nigeria continues to champion collaborative efforts aimed at addressing pressing national development challenges. (IIX), UNDP Nigeria continues to champion collaborative efforts aimed at addressing pressing national development challenges.
Note to Editors:
About UNDP
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the United Nations’ lead development agency with a mandate to eradicate poverty, through sustainable and inclusive human development. UNDP has been in Nigeria since the country became independent in 1960 providing integrated development solutions and support to the Federal Government of Nigeria in areas of Governance & Peace Building, Inclusive growth, and Sustainable Development.
Through UNDP’s strategic plan, UNDP is deploying signature solutions that are accelerating impact and scale in Nigeria. These include Democratic governance and peace building; inclusive and sustainable growth; climate change and environment; and crisis response and resilience. UNDP continues to support the government in the implementation of development interventions aimed at meeting medium to long term goals enshrined in National and State level development plans and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
About Nigeria Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF):
The Nigeria Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) aims to mobilize greater amounts of private and public resources to finance Nigeria’s sustainable development goals in line with national priorities. The implementation of the Nigeria INFF leverages both conventional and innovative financing mechanisms, while tackling the barriers to public and private sector participation towards addressing financing needs for economic recovery.
The INFF is an initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria whose Steering Committee is chaired by the Federal Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, with Secretarial support provided by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on SDGs (OSSAP-SDGs), and technical support from the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. Current funding partners of the INFF include United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the European Union (EU) Delegation in Nigeria.
For more information on the Nigeria Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF), visit the official resources:
About the SDG Investment Brokering Initiative:
As part of the INFF’s effort to drive private sector investments into sustainable development priorities in Nigeria, UNDP Nigeria in collaboration with the UNDP Africa Sustainable Finance Hub (ASFH) launched the SDG Investment Brokering initiative to bridge the access to finance gap for SMEs by providing market linkages between enterprises and domestic and international investors. The initiative builds on market intelligence provided through the Nigeria SDG Investor Map which identified SDG-enabling Investment Opportunity Areas (IOAs) where development needs and policy priorities align to create impact through commercially viable business solutions. The initiative encourages investors to proactively deploy capital towards addressing development priorities by investing with purpose and helps them and supported SMEs to measure and manage their impact on people and planet.
For more information on the Nigeria SDG Investor Map, visit the following resources:
Media Contact:
Christabel Chanda - Ginsberg
Public Engagement, Outreach & Partnerships Lead
christabel.chanda-ginsberg@undp.org
Tel: +234 904 935 4441
Fatima J. Umar
Programme Analyst – SDG Finance
Email: fatima.umar@undp.org
Tel: +2347061239200
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