The Alternative Bank has said Nigeria must significantly increase private-sector investment in infrastructure, warning that public budgets alone cannot meet the country’s growing financing needs.
The bank said the government’s limited resources were already under pressure from competing demands, including security, healthcare, education, debt servicing and social spending, making greater mobilisation of long-term private capital necessary to finance power, transport, digital connectivity and other infrastructure projects.
The bank stated this in a statement issued on Wednesday following its participation at the Nigeria Infrastructure Conference, INFRACON 2026, held in Abuja.
Speaking during a session titled, “Financing Infrastructure — Unlocking Private Capital,” the Branch Manager of The Alternative Bank’s Dei-Dei Branch, Jacob Achem, said closing Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit would require financing structures capable of attracting investors beyond the public sector.
“The infrastructure gap is too large to be addressed by public funding alone,” Achem said. “We need to unlock private capital and create financing structures that allow more investors to participate in Nigeria’s development.”
