FSD Africa, Nigerian pension industry partner on $750m infrastructure fund
Nike Popoola
The UK-funded development agency, FSD Africa, has partnered with Nigeria’s Pension Industry Leadership Council (PILC) to develop a proposed $750 million infrastructure investment fund aimed at mobilising pension assets and development finance for critical infrastructure projects in Nigeria and selected African markets.
A statement from the National Pension Commission (PenCom) today said the partnership, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on November 10, 2026, is expected to attract significant long-term domestic and international capital into infrastructure sectors, including energy, transport and digital connectivity.
The proposed investment platform has already attracted interest from 19 Nigerian pension funds, indicating growing appetite among pension operators to deploy more long-term capital into productive investments.
Under the agreement, FSD Africa will provide technical assistance and expert advice to PILC to facilitate the establishment of the fund. Its support will cover the selection of a fund manager through a competitive process, engagement with prospective investors and development finance institutions (DFIs), capacity building and necessary regulatory reforms.
UK Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Jonny Baxter, said the partnership reflected the shared commitment of the UK and Nigeria to mobilising domestic capital, particularly pension funds, to support economic development.
He said the UK was proud to partner with Nigeria’s pension industry and the National Pension Commission (PenCom), adding that the initiative would help translate investment ambitions into opportunities for jobs and economic growth.
Chairperson of PILC and Director-General of PenCom, Omolola Oloworaran, described the proposed platform as timely, noting that Nigeria’s pension industry controls the country’s largest pool of long-term savings capital.
She said the industry was committed to mobilising these resources to support infrastructure development while safeguarding contributors’ retirement savings.
According to her, the MoU represents the first step in a broader industry effort to channel pension assets towards national development.
FSD Africa Chief Executive Officer, Mark Napier, said the initiative would address the paradox of Africa having substantial institutional capital while facing significant infrastructure funding gaps.
He expressed the agency’s commitment to working with PenCom and Nigeria’s pension industry to unlock available capital for priority infrastructure projects.
The proposed platform is targeting an initial capital mobilisation of $350 million at its first close, expected in 2027, before scaling up to $750 million. At full capacity, it aims to attract approximately $600 million from Nigerian pension funds and at least $150 million from development finance institutions.
An initial assessment identified 39 infrastructure projects in Nigeria with potential relevance to the platform, representing approximately $20 billion in investment requirements.
The fund is expected to invest through equity and quasi-equity instruments, with at least 60 per cent of its portfolio allocated to Nigerian projects and the remainder available for selected regional investments.
Its proposed structure includes a naira-denominated core investment fund and a separate co-investment vehicle, with a possible foreign-currency vehicle for international investors.
