Nigeria : BOI, NSDC set up N10 billion fund for greenfield sugar projects
Nigeria has launched a ₦10 billion Sugar Project Acceleration Fund to support greenfield sugar projects and strengthen the domestic sugar industry. Managed by the Bank of Industry with guidance from the National Sugar Development Council, the fund will help project developers structure and prepare bankable investments to attract financing and boost local sugar production.
The National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) and the Bank of Industry (BOI) have established a N10 billion Sugar Project Acceleration Fund (SPAF) to support the development of greenfield sugar projects across the country and strengthen Nigeria’s sugar industry.
The fund is designed to provide financing and project development support to viable greenfield projects in a bid to accelerate the emergence of a sustainable and competitive sugar industry.
The initiative was unveiled during an interactive session hosted by the council, where officials of both organisations engaged greenfield project promoters who are potential beneficiaries of the facility.
Speaking at the event, the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of NSDC, Kamar Bakrin, said access to capital alone does not guarantee sugar production, noting that many development finance institutions and investors already have significant funds available for agro-industrial projects.
He said, “Here is a reality that every serious project promoter knows. Capital availability, on its own, will not result in sugar production. Development finance institutions manage billions of dollars in agro-industrial finance and are under pressure to deploy capital, while investors are actively seeking credible opportunities in African food systems.”
Bakrin noted that many projects often fail to attract funding because they are not properly structured or documented to meet the requirements of financiers.
“The constraint is not the availability of money. It is the availability of projects that are structured, documented and de-risked to the standard required to receive financing,” he said.
He explained that the fund was created to help promoters prepare their projects to meet those standards.
“SPAF is NSDC’s structured pre-investment facility established to provide qualifying project promoters with the technical, financial and advisory support required to develop their projects to bankable standard. It is not a grant programme but a facility designed to build a credible pipeline of investor-ready Nigerian sugar projects,” he added.
Also speaking, the Executive Director of Public Sector and Intervention Programmes at BOI, Hadiza Shuaib, said the bank will serve as the fund manager for SPAF while NSDC will provide sector leadership and technical guidance.
She said the programme goes beyond financing by placing strong emphasis on skills development and capacity building to ensure the sustainability of supported projects.
“As Fund Manager, BOI will ensure that projects are properly structured, risks are effectively managed, and funds are deployed responsibly. We are also strong advocates for skills development, because financing alone is not sufficient to deliver sustainable outcomes,” she said.
Shuaib explained that the bank’s responsibilities include credit appraisal, risk management, loan disbursement, monitoring and evaluation, as well as account closure after full repayment.
She added that only businesses engaged in sugar or sugar-related activities will qualify to benefit from the fund.
Greenfield projects represented at the interactive session included Illaj Sugar, Brent Foods, Crystal Sugar, Legacy Sugar, Saro Sugar, Awaa, Ganic and Confluence Sugar.
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Source : The Guardian
