Diaspora Investment: NiDCOM, NDSI Move to Bridge Trust Deficit, Unlock Billions in Nigerian Capital

* Investors demand credible projects, transparency, stronger safeguards as regulators open direct engagement with Nigerians abroad

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

Nigeria is seeking to unlock billions of dollars in potential diaspora investments by confronting the trust deficit, weak investment transparency and inadequate investor protection mechanisms that have discouraged many Nigerians abroad from committing capital to projects at home.

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) and the Nigeria Diaspora Summit Initiative (NDSI) have identified the credibility of investment opportunities, regulatory transparency and accountability in project execution as critical to converting diaspora financial resources into productive investments capable of driving economic growth.

Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NiDCOM, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said Nigeria’s diaspora community possessed enormous financial, professional, entrepreneurial and intellectual resources that could support the country’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy if credible investment channels and adequate institutional safeguards were put in place.

Dabiri-Erewa spoke on Tuesday at the opening of the ninth Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit (NDIS) 2026, organised around the theme, ‘Bridging the Trust Gap: Connecting Diaspora Capital with Credible Home-Based Opportunities.’

She said the time had come to move diaspora engagement beyond remittances and informal investment arrangements to structured, transparent and commercially viable opportunities capable of generating sustainable economic returns.

According to her, although Nigerians in the diaspora contribute billions of dollars annually through remittances, their wider investment potential remains largely untapped because of concerns over transparency, unreliable project information, opaque transactions and fraudulent investment schemes.

She identified the knowledge gap and trust deficit as two major barriers that have continued to constrain the flow of diaspora capital into productive sectors of the Nigerian economy.

“Unlocking diaspora capital requires more than passion or patriotism; it demands institutional transparency, robust regulatory safeguards, verified service providers, and clear investor protection frameworks,” she said.

The NiDCOM chief executive said the commission was committed to transforming diaspora engagement from general advocacy into structured, secure and profitable investment pathways.

She explained that the summit had been designed to give prospective investors direct access to institutions responsible for regulating Nigeria’s financial markets, facilitating infrastructure investments and improving the business environment.

The first day’s deliberations focused on capital market opportunities, with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) expected to guide participants on regulated financial instruments, investment risks, entry requirements and dispute resolution mechanisms.

The second day is dedicated to infrastructure and regulatory frameworks, with the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), MOFI and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) expected to provide information on infrastructure projects and investment opportunities under Public-Private Partnerships.

Other participating institutions, including the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) and Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), are expected to address business registration, regulatory compliance, anti-fraud safeguards, property documentation and reforms aimed at improving the business environment.

Dabiri-Erewa said the interactive sessions would enable diaspora investors to engage directly with regulators, scrutinise investment opportunities and obtain answers to questions relating to due diligence and the protection of their funds.

She urged Nigerians abroad to move away from informal and unverified investment channels and take advantage of the institutional mechanisms being presented at the summit.

“Under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Nigeria is open, improving and ready for your structured engagement,” she said.

She also challenged regulatory agencies, financial institutions and service providers participating in the summit to demonstrate transparency and strengthen the confidence of Nigerians abroad in the country’s investment environment.

In his welcome address, Chairman of the Summit Organising Committee and NDIS Coordinator, Mobolaji Lewis, said the central challenge confronting diaspora investment was not necessarily a lack of interest or financial capacity among Nigerians abroad, but persistent concerns about the credibility of investment opportunities and the protection of their funds.

He identified transparency, regulatory procedures, project execution, financial accountability and investor protection as critical factors influencing the willingness of Nigerians abroad to commit capital to the domestic economy.

Lewis said the summit had evolved into an important platform for connecting Nigerians in the diaspora with investment opportunities, institutions and stakeholders in Nigeria, while providing an avenue to convert their financial resources, professional expertise, entrepreneurial capabilities and global networks into productive investments.

He explained that the decision to scale down the physical summit in 2026, against the backdrop of the national election campaign season, informed the adoption of a two-day virtual engagement to sustain investment promotion and institutional collaboration.

According to him, the organisers deliberately moved beyond merely showcasing investment opportunities to helping prospective investors understand how to identify, verify, access and participate in credible projects in Nigeria.

“Building investor confidence requires a coordinated institutional response. No single organisation can independently address all the concerns of prospective investors,” Lewis said.

He urged participating regulators, financial institutions and government agencies to make their presentations practical, transparent and investor-focused, while encouraging Nigerians abroad to ask questions, seek clarification and engage directly with institutions responsible for facilitating and regulating investments.

Lewis said the success of the programme should not be measured merely by the number of participants or presentations, but by the quality of engagements established, the confidence generated and the investment partnerships that emerge.

He added that the 2026 engagement would lay the groundwork for the full Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit in 2027, which would mark the 10th anniversary of the initiative.

The summit is being organised by NDSI in collaboration with NiDCOM, with support from corporate partners, including First Bank of Nigeria Plc, O3 Capital and AG Mortgage.

Nigeria’s renewed effort to attract diaspora investment comes against the backdrop of its longstanding dependence on remittances from citizens abroad as an important source of foreign exchange and household support.

However, converting a greater proportion of these financial flows into long-term productive investments remains a major policy challenge, particularly in an environment where prospective investors demand verifiable projects, transparent transactions, effective oversight and credible mechanisms for resolving disputes.

For the organisers, the challenge therefore goes beyond persuading Nigerians abroad to bring their money home. It is about rebuilding confidence in the country’s investment environment and ensuring that diaspora resources translate into viable businesses, infrastructure and sustainable economic opportunities.

Ultimately, the success of the initiative will depend not on how strongly Nigeria appeals to the patriotism of its citizens abroad, but on how convincingly it demonstrates that their investments are safe, their interests protected and the opportunities presented are capable of delivering sustainable returns.

That is the trust gap the ninth Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit seeks to bridge, making confidence, rather than patriotism alone, the foundation for bringing diaspora capital into Nigeria’s economy.