NSDC Partners With NEXIM Bank to Boost Financing for Large-Scale Sugar Projects

By our Correspondent

The National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) and the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM Bank) have forged a strategic partnership aimed at securing long-term, development-oriented financing to transform Nigeria’s sugar industry on a large scale.
The agreement followed a meeting between both organisations in Abuja.

The NSDC delegation, led by Executive Secretary/CEO Mr. Kamar Bakrin, proposed a partnership leveraging the Engineering, Procurement, Construction plus Financing (EPC+F) model to fund the Council’s bankable sugar projects. Under this framework, NSDC will originate and develop policy-aligned projects while supporting equity mobilisation. NEXIM Bank, in turn, will drive capital mobilisation by facilitating access to international Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), coordinating syndications with Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), supporting foreign input financing, and providing risk-mitigation instruments, including guarantees and commercial risk insurance.
During the engagement, Mr. Bakrin highlighted the enormous potential of Nigeria’s sugar market, valued at roughly US$2 billion, and the broader African sugar market, estimated at around US$7 billion. He also noted that sugar by-products in Nigeria alone have a market exceeding US$10 billion.
“Nigeria cannot achieve self-sufficiency in sugar production on short-term capital,” Mr. Bakrin said. “What the sector requires is patient, long-tenor financing deployed at scale and backed by policy certainty. By partnering with NEXIM Bank and international export credit partners, we are putting in place a financing architecture that allows serious investors to execute, not speculate.”
He further stressed that Nigeria is well-positioned to serve domestic and regional markets competitively under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), provided that long-term, appropriately priced financing is deployed to scale sugarcane cultivation and processing at industrial levels.
The NSDC boss explained that the EPC+F model has already been successfully applied through an existing partnership with SINOMACH, a leading Chinese engineering conglomerate. Financing of up to US$1 billion has been structured at the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) plus 3%, with a 15-year tenor and three-year moratorium, to accelerate large-scale sugar projects in Nigeria.
The initiative is projected to generate annual foreign exchange savings of about US$300 million through import substitution, create over 50,000 jobs across the sugar value chain, and achieve up to 25% import substitution within five to ten years.
Mr. Bakrin outlined institutional measures to de-risk investments, including ongoing efforts to codify the Nigeria Sugar Master Plan (NSMP) into law through amendments to the NSDC Act, guaranteeing policy continuity and investor protection. He also noted that smuggling and other market-distorting activities are being addressed through rigorous enforcement and penalties.
Large-scale sugar projects are designed to generate employment in farming, processing, logistics, and ancillary services. Outgrower schemes integrate smallholder farmers into commercial value chains, boosting rural incomes and promoting inclusive growth.
Host community engagement is prioritised through preferential employment, skills development, and investments in infrastructure, healthcare, and education, fostering social stability and long-term project viability.
Mr. Bakrin also highlighted environmental benefits, noting that sugarcane cultivation acts as a renewable crop and year-round carbon sink. “The sector supports value-added renewable co-products such as ethanol and bioelectricity, contributing to climate and energy-transition goals. NSDC promotes environmentally responsible production models and sustainable land-use practices, alongside inclusive community and outgrower participation, positioning projects to attract climate-aligned and development-oriented capital,” he said.
He added that projects are anchored on credible operators with proven technical and financial capacity, and that community acceptance and land access are treated as gating criteria to ensure execution certainty and long-term bankability.
In his remarks, NEXIM Bank Managing Director Mr. Abba Bello welcomed the initiative, recognising the strategic role of the sugar industry in economic diversification, export growth, and value-chain expansion. He affirmed NEXIM Bank’s commitment to supporting structured partnerships that unlock long-term financing, strengthen local value chains, and enhance Nigeria’s competitiveness in regional and international markets.
Mr. Bello praised NSDC’s structured, execution-focused approach and reiterated the Bank’s support for viable export-oriented and import-substitution projects aligned with national development priorities.