By Yinka Kolawole
Nigeria emerged as one of Africa’s strongest foreign investment performers in 2025, recording a 148 per cent increase in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows despite a sharp decline across the continent, according to the UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) World Investment Report 2026.
The report showed that global FDI rebounded by six per cent to $1.624 trillion in 2025 from $1.532 trillion in 2024, ending two consecutive years of decline. However, the recovery was uneven. While investment into developed economies rose by 11 per cent, FDI flows to Africa dropped by 26 per cent to $70 billion from $94 billion recorded in 2024.
Against this backdrop, Nigeria stood out as one of the continent’s best performers, with FDI inflows rising from $1.61 billion in 2024 to $4.01 billion in 2025. The increase placed Nigeria among Africa’s leading investment destinations, ahead of Ethiopia, Morocco, Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, although it still trailed Egypt, Guinea and Mozambique.
Despite the strong rebound, analysts noted that Nigeria’s performance was driven largely by major transactions in the oil, gas and energy sectors, rather than broad-based investments in manufacturing and other productive sectors.
