…says manufacturing operating below 50% capacity despite BOI support, warns of deeper structural crisis
The Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics (AERE) has said that while the Bank of Industry’s (BOI) record N644.9 billion disbursement in 2025 marks a significant milestone for Nigeria’s industrial development, financing alone will not be enough to deliver the country’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy unless longstanding structural constraints facing manufacturers are urgently addressed.
In a policy brief signed by Dele Kelvin Oye, chairman of the Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics, the group commended BOI for shifting its focus from measuring success by loan volumes to assessing the developmental impact of its interventions.
According to the report, BOI disbursed N644.9 billion in 2025, supported 1.68 million jobs and financed projects across 14 strategic sectors, with more than 30 percent of its funding going to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and over 20 percent benefiting women- and youth-led businesses.
The alliance also lauded President Bola Tinubu for prioritising industrialisation under the Renewed Hope Agenda and Yemi Cardoso, the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for policies aimed at directing finance toward productive sectors.
