By adenigga(m)
The World Bank is set to approve a fresh $500 million loan to Nigeria next month.
The loan is aimed at boosting agricultural productivity and strengthening key value chains across participating states.
According to official project documents at the weekend, the loan has an estimated approval date of March 30, 2026.
The project lists a “Total Operation Cost” of $500 million, with “Total Financing” also put at $500 million.
The entire funding will be provided by the World Bank’s concessional lending arm, the International Development Association, through an IDA credit facility valued at $500 million.
The borrower is listed as the Federal Republic of Nigeria, while implementation will be handled by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security alongside participating state governments.
The project is designed to increase smallholder productivity and strengthen targeted agricultural value chains in selected states. The World Bank noted that creating more and better jobs, while tackling food and nutrition insecurity, remains one of Nigeria’s most pressing development challenges.
The facility will be deployed across four major components.
These include integrating smallholder farmers into competitive value chains, modernizing smallholder production systems, strengthening policy frameworks and the enabling environment to attract private investment in input markets, and ensuring effective project coordination and monitoring.
The planned loan comes amid a continued rise in Nigeria’s external debt profile. Data show that funding from the International Development Association increased by $1.9 billion within one year, reaching $18.7 billion as of December 31, 2025.
According to the Debt Management Office, Nigeria’s total external debt stood at $46.98 billion as of June 30, 2025. Of that amount, the World Bank Group accounted for $19.39 billion.
