By LOVETH-AZODO CHIJIOKE, Lagos
In a major move away from keeping retirement savings mostly in government bonds, 19 Nigerian Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) are teaming up to support a new $750 million infrastructure investment fund.
The goal is to help finance an estimated $20 billion backlog of essential national projects across power, transport, and digital networks.
The initiative, known as the Pension Infrastructure Investment Platform (PIIP), represents the first unified effort by Nigerian pension managers to solve a long-standing economic contradiction: the country has trillions of Naira locked up in long-term domestic retirement savings, while basic roads, power plants, and telecom networks suffer from severe funding shortages.
To get the platform running, the Pension Industry Leadership Council (PILC) chaired by the Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Ms. Omolola Oloworaran has signed a technical agreement with UK-backed financial development agency FSD Africa. Under the pact, FSD Africa will provide expert guidance to set up the fund’s management, attract co-investors, and help establish safeguards to keep contributors’ money safe.
The plan is designed to roll out in stages, aiming to raise an initial $350 million by its first close in 2027 before growing to the full target of $750 million. Once fully established, Nigerian pension funds will contribute roughly $600 million in local, long-term investments, while international Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) will provide the remaining $150 million.
Speaking on the shift toward funding tangible national projects, Oloworaran assured the public that putting pension assets into public infrastructure will not put workers’ retirement benefits at risk.
“The pension industry holds the largest pool of long-term savings capital in the country, and we are committed to mobilising it to deepen infrastructure development, while safeguarding the retirement savings of contributors,” Oloworaran said. “This MoU is the first step we are taking as an industry, and it is just the beginning”.
The platform will directly target an existing pipeline of 39 priority projects in energy, transport, and internet connectivity that currently need about $20 billion in total funding.
To protect Nigerian pension managers from the dangers of exchange rate swings, the initiative will feature a main Naira-based investment fund, alongside a co-investment option that allows individual PFAs to invest directly in specific projects. A separate foreign-currency vehicle will also be created to welcome international investors, with at least 60 per cent of all investments reserved strictly for projects within Nigeria.
Explaining the importance of the partnership, the Chief Executive Officer of FSD Africa, Mr. Mark Napier, pointed out that African economies must learn to rely more on their own domestic resources rather than waiting for foreign commercial loans.
“We have observed for several years now the paradox of Africa having significant institutional capital while at the same time facing big infrastructure funding deficits,” Napier said. “We are keen to work with PenCom and the pension industry in Nigeria to address this and unlock the capital they manage towards Nigeria’s priority infrastructure”.
Also supporting the initiative, the UK Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Mr. Jonny Baxter, commended Nigeria’s progress in channeling domestic savings into job creation, economic productivity, and broader national growth.
As the next step, FSD Africa will assist the industry council in running a transparent, competitive process to select an independent fund manager to handle day-to-day project investments and regulatory compliance.
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