The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved a $100 million African Development Bank (AfDB) loan for the Youth Investment Fund, a programme targeted at empowering young Nigerian entrepreneurs aged 18 to 35 across the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector.
Briefing journalists after the Council’s 10th meeting of 2025, held at the State House, Abuja, and presided over by President Bola Tinubu, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, said the fund would provide equity, debt, grants and other financial instruments to support youth-led businesses at the grassroots.
According to Edun, the initiative is aimed at boosting youth participation in productive economic activities and strengthening Nigeria’s MSME ecosystem.
He also disclosed that FEC approved additional financing from the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) for the UBAS Integrated Agricultural Development Project, describing it as long-term, concessional funding from multilateral development partners targeted at promoting inclusive growth.
Edun further revealed that the highlight of Wednesday’s FEC meeting was the presentation of the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper.
He said President Tinubu commended ministers for their dedication to the Renewed Hope agenda and stressed the need for strict prioritisation in government spending.
According to the finance minister, the President directed all ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to focus capital expenditure on growth-enhancing projects, strategic legacy infrastructure, and programmes with the highest economic impact.
