Nigerian business leaders have identified port decongestion, logistics, economic zones, manufacturing and renewable energy as priority sectors for increased investment from the United Arab Emirates, as the two countries deepen ties. The Organised Private Sector made the call after UAE capital importation to Nigeria rose by 87.8 per cent to $728.81m in 2025, up from $388.01m in 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The UAE invested about $71.32bn across Sub-Saharan Africa between 2021 and 2025, the UAE Minister of State, Saeed bin Mubarak Al Hajeri, disclosed in August.
The First Deputy President of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Prof. Adesoji Adesugba, said ports offer the biggest opportunity. UAE companies such as DP World and AD Ports Group already operate across Africa, and Nigeria's port congestion and weak inland logistics raise costs across the entire economy, he explained. Free trade zones represent an obvious entry point because they offer incentives and faster setup that Gulf investors are accustomed to, Adesugba added. However, he urged caution about the capital importation figures, noting that they are typically dominated by portfolio flows and loans that leave quickly when exchange rates or interest rates shift. The real test, he said, is whether Nigeria can convert Emirati interest into direct, long-term investment in productive sectors rather than financial services and real estate, which offer less development benefit.
The President of the Association of Small Business Owners of Nigeria, Dr Femi Egbesola, said UAE investment in manufacturing and renewable energy could address pressing challenges facing Nigerian businesses, including high energy costs, expensive raw materials, limited access to finance and inefficient supply chains. Energy experts have urged the Federal Government to attract UAE funding to strengthen electricity infrastructure, particularly after Nigeria's participation at Middle East Energy 2026 in Dubai, where the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, highlighted the country's commitment to developing energy infrastructure.
The UAE has committed more than $70bn to renewable and green energy projects across Africa through initiatives including Masdar's $10bn programme and the Etihad 7 platform. The National Secretary of the Network for Electricity Consumers Advocacy of Nigeria, Uket Obonga, said Nigeria should seek to attract roughly 10 per cent of these funds, equivalent to about $7bn, for electricity infrastructure. If half of that amount went into grid networks, he said, it would significantly improve the country's power supply. Obonga called on the Federal Government and Minister of Power to communicate clearly about what funds are being pursued from the UAE and how they would be deployed.
Adesugba stressed that attracting sustained investment requires bankable projects, investor confidence in earnings repatriation and a stable bilateral investment framework. The Special Adviser to the Governor of Enugu State on Investment Strategy and Public Relations, Humphrey Onyima, recently visited the UAE Embassy in Abuja to establish an Enugu State-UAE Investment Corridor, signalling Nigeria's push to formalise the partnership.
For Nigerian savers and borrowers, increased UAE investment in productive sectors like ports and energy could lower business costs and improve electricity supply, though portfolio flows that dominate current inflows may offer limited economic benefit if they do not translate into productive long-term projects.