Nigeria secures $428 million German investment deal as Europe deepens Africa energy push

Nigeria and Germany have signed a new development and investment partnership valued at about $428 million, expanding bilateral cooperation across energy, agriculture, industrial development, and private-sector financing.

• Nigeria and Germany have signed a $428 million development and investment partnership agreement in Abuja.
• The deal includes funding for energy, agriculture, healthcare, skills development, and private sector growth.
• German officials said the agreement would support long-term investment and strengthen trade ties with Africa’s largest economy.
• The partnership also reinforces Germany’s backing for Nigeria’s power sector reforms and industrial expansion plans.

The agreement, signed in Abuja on Thursday, includes a €65 million commitment for financial and technical cooperation, alongside a €300 million export credit guarantee framework designed to support long-term investments and trade projects in Nigeria. Using the current Forbes currency converter rate of €1 to $1.17, the total package is worth roughly $428 million.

According to Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, the deal was signed by Minister of Budget and Economic Planning Senator Abubakar Bagudu, Minister of State for Budget and Economic Planning Doris Uzoka-Anite, and senior German officials at the German Embassy in Abuja.

Uzoka-Anite said the partnership was intended to mobilise investment and sustainable financing at a time when Nigeria is pursuing economic reforms under President Bola Tinubu.

“We recognise that development cooperation must increasingly catalyse investment, innovation, and sustainable financing,” she said during the signing ceremony.

The agreement deepens cooperation in areas including agricultural transformation, renewable energy, climate transition, skills development, healthcare and economic reforms, according to both governments.

German Ambassador to Nigeria Annett Günther said the agreement followed months of bilateral discussions involving Nigerian ministries, German development agencies, and European Union representatives aimed at strengthening economic ties between the two countries.

Philip Knill, Deputy Director General at Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, described Nigeria as a strategic African partner for regional integration, trade and security cooperation.

Germany boosts Nigeria's power plans

Knill said the German delegation also held meetings with Nigerian and German businesses focused on power, agriculture, industrialisation and the digital economy. He added that major German companies, including Siemens, SAP, Bayer and STIHL, were exploring opportunities in Nigeria’s energy, industrial and agricultural sectors.

The announcement comes as Nigeria seeks to attract foreign capital following a series of reforms, including foreign exchange liberalisation, tax changes and efforts to improve food security.

Knill said Germany viewed the reforms as important for boosting investor confidence and encouraging long-term financing into Africa’s largest economy.

He also highlighted the impact of existing Nigeria-Germany programmes, saying more than 16,000 small businesses had recorded income growth through joint initiatives, while about 600,000 smallholder farming households had benefited from agricultural training programmes.

Germany also reaffirmed its support for Nigeria’s Presidential Power Initiative, which is being implemented in partnership with Siemens to expand the country’s electricity grid capacity to 25 gigawatts.

Both countries said the partnership would focus on translating investment commitments into measurable economic outcomes through stronger institutional cooperation and private sector participation.