Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The National Economic Council (NEC) presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday, approved additional investment of $250 million into the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).
The NSIA manages the surplus income from Nigeria’s excess oil reserves.
The wealth fund commenced operations in October 2012 and was set up by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority Act, which was signed in May 2011.
The fund was allocated an initial US$1 billion in seed capital. However, an additional $0.5billion was contributed to the fund.
The Managing Director Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Uchechi Orji, made the disclosure while briefing State House Correspondents.
He also announced the setting up of a committee to work out modalities for collaboration between the NSIA and the National Pension Commission on how to channel pension funds for investment.
Orji had presented NSIA’s 2018 annual report and 2019 finance update to NEC, where he disclosed that the agency made a total profit of N44.3 billion in 2018, adding that, in 2019 as at the end of the first six months, they have made a profit of N24 billion so far.
“This is achieved in the face of a volatile international market environment, driven by the trade dispute between the United States and China as well as Brexit challenges” Orji stated
NEC passed a vote of confidence in the NSIA whose activities are focused on its infrastructure fund on agriculture, road, power, healthcare projects and industrialisation. Orji stated that NSIA as the manager of the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) is focused on deploying capital to ensure the completion of the second Niger Bridge, Abuja-Kano Highway and Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
“Other projects under the PIDF include the Mambila Hydro Power project and East-Ways Road.
Orji also announced NSIA’s intention to deploy capital in expanding its health projects, following a successful implementation of its cancer treatment project Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with LUTH as well as a diagnostic and Radiology centre in Aminu Kano Specialist Hospital to be commissioned next month and the Federal Medical Centre Umahia PPP project which will be finished in the first quarter of 2020.
“To facilitate this, the NSIA will create co-investment fund to bring other investors into these projects to ensure that they get to completion and the revenue model will include tolling the roads as other opportunities to ensure that these roads are viable.”
The Imo State Governor, Emeka Ihedioha, told State House Correspondents that the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris, while also briefing on behalf of the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, reported to Council that the balances in Excess Crude Account (ECA)as at November 20, 2019, is $324,539,031.51, with Stabilisation Account at November 20, 2019 N29,480,483,393.33, while the Natural Resources Development Fund Account stands at 20th November, 2019 N 79,751,649,521.54.
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