Can Tinubu turn the tide on FDI?

Aso Rock has a new tenant and Nigeria has a new boss. The policy challenges that await President Tinubu on his desk are piled high and most are marked urgent. But if the “architect of Lagos” is to re-build the country, making Nigeria once again attractive to foreign investors will be fundamental to the success of his tenure.

To achieve this, it will take more than just delivering policy outcomes, he will be need to re-shape how Nigeria is perceived. He will need to change the narrative. He will need to re-build trust with investors who have been burnt by Nigeria in recent years. Like any tarnished brand, he will need to show the world that Nigeria is under new management and worth another look.

The flight of foreign direct investment (FDI) from Nigeria under the Buhari has been truly startling. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, annual FDI went from $1.45bn in 2015 to $698.7m in 2021 and just $468.08m in 2022.