Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State has revealed that Nigeria needs a whopping $3tn worth of investments or $100bn every year for the next 30 years to close its infrastructure deficit, according to a 2014 report.
According to him, the Federal Government needs to double its spending from two to three per cent of the Gross Domestic Product to over 10 per cent to bridge the country’s huge infrastructure gap.
He noted this at the 2023 annual lecture organised by the Nigerian Academy of Engineering, themed “Financing engineering infrastructure” held in Lagos recently.
The former Central of Nigeria governor lamented that Nigeria’s infrastructure stock was estimated at 20-25 per cent of Gross Domestic Product, which was less than the international benchmark of 70 per cent of GDP.nch
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He said, “2014 National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan estimates that a total of $3tn of investments, or $100bn annually, is required over the next 30 years to bridge Nigeria’s infrastructure gap while Nigeria needs to double its spending from two to three per cent of GDP to over 10 per cent.
“What needs to change in infrastructure development in the country is for the government to target a minimum of 8-15 per cent of GDP in public infrastructure investment per year for the next 10 years.”
Soludo underscored the necessity for the Federal Government to adopt a disruptive and decisive approach, accompanied by a specified timeframe.
