Piqued that Nigeria’s inflows of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) stand at an average of 0.5 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) over the last decade and far below the African average, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), says its Investopedia is programmed as a flagship platform to position the country’s 36 states as credible investment destinations.

Speaking at the launch of the flagship investment platform in Abuja, Tuesday, the NGF Director General, Mr Abdulateef Shittu, and Chairman, Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, noted that with yearly FDI averages of only $2 billion concentrated in oil and gas, telecommunications, real estate, and agriculture,” the inflow was insufficient for true subnational transformation.

Abdulrazaq, who was represented by the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, described the launch as “a milestone achievement for the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and for our country.”

He explained that the NGF Investopedia platform would stand as one of the legacies of his stewardship, stressing that Nigeria remained Africa’s largest economy, endowed with abundant human and natural resources.

In his remarks, the DG noted that the launch of the flagship investment platform would herald a new dawn in Nigeria’s investment readiness at the subnational level, adding that it would provide “a one-stop shop to engage with credible opportunities, backed by a transparent process, strong institutional oversight, and global visibility.”

MEANWHILE, the Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr Aminu Maida, has stressed that the alignment between national and subnational digital infrastructure serves as a “game changer” for Nigeria’s digital economy.

He noted that the crucial milestone represents a significant step toward advancing Nigeria’s digital transformation, lamenting that the N145 per linear meter Right of Way (RoW) fees thrust a significant burden on telecom companies.

Maida made the assertions when he led an NCC delegation on a courtesy visit to the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) Secretariat in Abuja. He commended the NGF for its willingness to collaborate, saying that the forum’s “openness to engage with us reflects a shared belief in the impact digital solutions can have on subnational development.”

Thanking the NCC team for the visit, the NGF Director General (DG), Abdulateef Shittu, remarked that both agencies had a shared commitment to enhancing broadband connectivity and safeguarding critical national information infrastructure (CNII) across Nigeria’s states.

Echoing the call for collaboration, Shittu highlighted the centrality of broadband and secure infrastructure to state development. “Broadband and secure information infrastructure are no longer optional inputs to development. They are foundational public goods,” the DG declared.