Saudi to Invest $25bn in Africa as Nigeria Sees ‘Immediate’ Inflows
Saudi Arabia will invest some $25 billion in Africa by the end of the decade as part of its Vision 2030 economic transformation plan, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
This comes as Nigeria declares that it expects “immediate” multibillion-dollar investment from Saudi Arabia after signing a deal with the country following the first Saudi-Africa Summit, which began on Friday.
According to the SPA, more than 50 transactions and preliminary agreements were inked during the summit in industries like as tourism, energy, banking, mining, and logistics.
During the summit, Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, signed agreements with Saudi Arabia in the agriculture, oil and gas, energy, telecommunications, and technology sectors.
The Nigerian government stated that the agreements involve Saudi Arabian investments in the West African country’s oil refineries, as well as the re-establishment of a Nigeria-Saudi Arabia Business Council.
Africa’s Global Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, and Saudi Export-Import Bank (Saudi EXIM), the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s principal export credit agency, also established a relationship targeted at increasing business growth and enhancing economic cooperation between respective economies.
On November 9, 2023, both organizations signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote economic cooperation and commercial links between the two entities.
Presidents and prime ministers attended the conference, with each pushing for increased Saudi investments and economic relations on both bilateral and international levels.
Saudi exports to the continent worth $10 billion will be financed and insured until 2030, according to the Saudi News Agency, and the Saudi Fund for Development will fund development initiatives worth $5 billion within the same time period.
Earlier on Saturday, the oil-rich Middle Eastern country announced that it will finalize investment plans within a week, with officials from the kingdom sealing multiple transactions when they visit Nigeria before the end of December.
“We know you are ready for business, so we do not want to come to Nigeria for any exploratory discussion. We are coming for implementation, it’s an action visit. It will be to sign and begin delivery on all agreements,” Saudi Kahlid El-Falih, Arabia’s trade and investment minister told Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu during the business round-table.
