A major financing drive to reposition Nigeria’s sugar industry is underway following a strategic partnership between the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) and the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM Bank), aimed at mobilising long-term capital for large-scale sectoral transformation.
The collaboration, formalised at a meeting in Abuja, will deploy the Engineering, Procurement, Construction plus Financing (EPC+F) model to fund viable and policy-aligned sugar projects across the country. Under the framework, NSDC will originate and structure bankable projects while facilitating equity mobilisation, whereas NEXIM Bank will anchor capital raising efforts through access to international Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), syndication with Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), foreign input financing, as well as guarantees and risk insurance.
Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of NSDC, Kamar Bakrin, described the sugar industry as a high-potential sector capable of driving economic diversification. He noted that Nigeria’s sugar market is currently valued at about $2 billion, compared to Africa’s estimated $7 billion market size, while sugar by-products within Nigeria alone account for more than $10 billion in market value.
According to Bakrin, achieving self-sufficiency in sugar production will require patient, long-tenor financing deployed at scale. He added that with competitively priced, long-term capital, Nigeria is well positioned to serve both domestic demand and regional markets under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The NSDC boss disclosed that the EPC+F model is already being implemented through a partnership with SINOMACH, under which up to $1 billion in financing has been structured at a rate of SOFR plus three per cent, with a 15-year tenor and a three-year moratorium. The initiative is projected to deliver annual foreign exchange savings of approximately $300 million, create more than 50,000 jobs, and achieve up to 25 per cent import substitution within five to ten years.
To mitigate investment risks and ensure long-term policy certainty, NSDC is working to codify the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan into law. The council is also intensifying enforcement measures to curb smuggling and protect local investments. In addition, projects under the framework are structured to integrate smallholder farmers through outgrower schemes, prioritise host community participation, and incorporate environmentally sustainable components such as ethanol production and bioelectricity generation.
Responding to the initiative, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM Bank), Abba Bello, welcomed the initiative, underscoring the strategic relevance of the sugar industry to Nigeria’s broader economic diversification agenda, export growth and value-chain development objectives.
Bello said the bank is keen to explore well-structured partnerships capable of unlocking sustainable, long-term financing for the sector, while strengthening domestic production capacity and enhancing Nigeria’s competitiveness in regional and global markets.
He commended the structured, execution-driven framework being advanced by the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC), noting that such a coordinated approach increases investor confidence and improves project bankability. He reaffirmed NEXIM Bank’s commitment to backing viable, export-oriented and import-substitution projects that align with national development priorities and contribute meaningfully to foreign exchange earnings and industrial growth.