As Nigeria steps up its domestic financial overhauls and structural transformations, the prospect of deepening bilateral economic ties with the Gulf has emerged as a major catalyst for growth.
Following massive capital deployments across Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), industry leaders emphasise that maintaining a steady course of policy and sectoral reforms could unlock a significantly larger share of United Arab Emirates (UAE) investment, paving the way for expanded infrastructure, non-oil trade, and long-term economic resilience.
The UAE reported investing $71.32billion in Sub-Saharan Africa between 2021 and 2025.
Though the UAE did not provide a country-by-country breakdown, Nigeria’s capital importation from the Gulf nation jumped 87.8 percent to $728.81million in 2025 from $388.01million in 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data.
The NBS data showed that Nigeria attracted $2.08billion in capital from the UAE between 2021 and 2025, rising to $2.28billion after adding the $194.51million recorded in the first quarter (Q1) of 2026.
