Business
Investment Flow To Nigeria Drops By 70%
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has said that Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) into Nigeria has dropped sharply by 70.06 per cent in three months.
This is according to ts data on the latest importation report, which indicated that the drop on quarter-on-quarter basis was from $421.88m recorded in the last quarter of 2024, to $126.29m in the first quarter of 2025.
The steep decline in FDI occurred despite an overall increase in capital importation into the country, indicating that foreign investors are favouring short-term, high-yield financial instruments over long-term, productive commitments in the Nigerian economy.
On a year-on-year basis, FDI posted a modest growth of 5.97 per cent compared to $119.18m recorded in the same period of 2024, but this marginal increase has done little to shift the broader trend of dwindling interest in long-term investment.
The data show that FDI made up only 2.24 per cent of total capital imported into the country in first quarter of 2025, down from 8.29 per cent in the preceding quarter and below the 3.53 per cent recorded in first quarter of 2024.
According to the NBS data, total capital importation rose to $5.64bn in first quarter of 2025, an increase from $5.09bn in last quarter of 2024 and $3.38bn in first quarter of 2024.
The figures reflect a growing disconnect between headline capital inflows and actual investment in sectors capable of driving economic growth.
It further revealed that the headline rise in capital importation might suggest renewed investor confidence, and that closer examination reveals that over 90 per cent of these inflows were directed into short-term money market instruments, such as government bonds and treasury bills, rather than equity or direct investments.
This trend, the report revealed, raises fresh concerns about the sustainability of Nigeria’s current investment profile, which remains heavily reliant on speculative flows that can exit the economy with little warning.
FDI, which is generally viewed as a vote of confidence in the host country’s long-term prospects, has been crowded out by short-term capital chasing quick returns in Nigeria’s high-yield debt market.
In its capital importation data, the NBS reported that the manufacturing sector attracted $129.92m in first quarter 2025, down from $191.92m in the corresponding quarter of 2024.
The sector’s share of total capital importation also fell from 5.68 per cent in first quarter 2024 to 2.30 per cent in first quarter 2025.
The manufacturing sector’s capacity to attract foreign investment has remained weak, and the 2023-2024 window saw multinationals exit with a harsh operating environment in the height of economic reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu.
As the reforms weakened purchasing power and slowed consumption, manufacturers invested less.
Corlins Walter
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A boat accident in Bayelsa state has killed a serving Pastor, Wife and other church members along Brass waterways
The sad incident happened at Odioama in Brass local government area of Bayelsa State when the Pastor, wife and members of his church were in a programme.
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?Tide confirmed that the lifeless body of the Pastor’s wife has been found and deposited in a mortuary while the remains of her husband ,the Pastor is yet to be recovered
as search party are still ongoing.
Although the real cause of the boat Mishap is not yet known as at the time of this report, our Correspondent gathered that the identities of the Pastor, wife and church members were not disclosed to the public.
The mishap, Tide gathered occurred on Friday morning when the church members were on a boat transit
The Bayelsa State government and the state police command are yet to issue official statement’s on the sad accident
By: CHINEDU WOSU
The Rivers State Council of Nigeria Civil Service Union has called on the State Government to urgently scrap the contributory pension scheme, describing it as unfavourable to long-serving civil servants in the state.
Chairman of the union, Chukwuka Osuma, said this in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt, recently.
Osuma said the current pension structure has continued to worsen post-retirement hardship for workers.
He noted that the contributory pension scheme had failed to provide adequate retirement security for workers who had spent many years in service, especially those approaching retirement age.
According to him, civil servants who had served for more than 20 years were among the worst affected under the scheme, insisting that many retirees could no longer cope with prevailing economic realities.
He also informed that the Union has made moves to showcase their concerns, pleading with Governor Siminalayi Fubara to abolish the pension policy and introduce a more favourable arrangement for affected workers.
“The union was not opposed to pension reforms, the contributory scheme should only apply to newly employed workers or those with fewer years in service”, he said.
Osuma explained that workers who had already spent decades in the civil service ought to remain under a more secure pension structure capable of guaranteeing stability after retirement.
The labour leader further noted that inflation and the rising cost of living had continued to erode the value of retirement savings, thereby increasing the suffering of pensioners across the country.
He also appealed to the state government to consider extending the years of service in the civil service from 35 to 40 years and the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.
Osuma argued that such adjustment had become necessary in view of present-day economic realities and changing conditions in the workplace.
The unionist also reviewed that similar policies had already been adopted in some sectors and jurisdictions, expressing optimism that the State could also implement the reforms for the benefit of workers.
He however, commended Governor Fubara for approving an N85,000 minimum wage for workers in the state, noting that the amount was above the national benchmark of N70,000.
Osuma also acknowledged the government’s efforts in the area of workers’ promotions and bonuses, but insisted that pension reforms and extension of years of service remained critical to the long-term welfare and stability of civil servants in Rivers State.
By: King Onunwor
The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.
Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.
According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.
Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.
“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.
The minister noted the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.
According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.
Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.
He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.
“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.
He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.
“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.
Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.
“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.
“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.
Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.
She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.
Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).
“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.
“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.
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