Nigeria’s capital importation reached $23 billion in 2025. It was over $12 billion in 2024. Foreign exchange reserves exceeded $50 billion. The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, disclosed the figures. She spoke at the Third Annual Lagos Multi-Door Courthouses and Alternative Dispute Resolution Stakeholders’ Summit. The event held at the MUSON Centre. The theme was “Investor Confidence and ADR: Strengthening Nigeria’s Investment Climate.”
Nigeria’s capital importation collapsed after 2019. Foreign investors fled as exchange rate distortions worsened. In 2023, the government floated the naira and cleared FX backlogs. Confidence returned slowly. In 2024, inflows began to recover. In 2025, they accelerated. The J.P. Morgan and FTSE reclassifications opened the door. The current figures reflect that recovery. The question is whether the capital stays.
Oduwole said capital importation rose 83% year-on-year. It rose from $5.5 billion in the first quarter of 2025 to over $10 billion in the same period of 2026. Reserves rose from over $40 billion to over $50 billion. That strengthens Nigeria’s capacity to absorb shocks. She attributed the gains to reforms. These include foreign exchange unification, fuel subsidy removal, tax reforms and banking recapitalisation. The economy grew above 4% in 2025. Inflation fell from 33.2% in 2024 to 14.63% in September 2026. Non-oil exports exceeded $6 billion. Products included cocoa derivatives, fertiliser, cashew, dairy, pulp and paper, and cassava starch.
Oduwole stressed the quality of capital. “Nigeria is working on moving capital into factories, infrastructure, processing capacity, and enterprises that can grow, employ, and export,” she said. She identified dispute resolution as critical. Investors want institutional reliability, regulatory clarity and contract enforceability. Mediation and arbitration reduce costs. Her ministry is advancing an investment ombudsman.
The Attorney-General, Lateef Fagbemi, described arbitration as indispensable. He said the government is reviewing the Arbitration and Mediation Act 2023. The goal is to position Nigeria as an African dispute-resolution hub.
Winners: The Federal Government, which gains credibility. Investors, who gain confidence. The LMDC, which gains visibility. Businesses, which gain dispute resolution options. Exporters, who gain markets. Losers: Critics who dismissed the reforms. Countries that failed to reform. Nigerians who see no improvement in daily life. The government, if capital flows reverse. Short-term speculators, if long-term capital dominates.
Bottom Line: Capital importation hit $23 billion. Reserves crossed $50 billion. Inflation fell to 14.63%. Non-oil exports exceeded $6 billion. The numbers are strong. Quality matters. Nigeria must turn portfolio flows into factories. Dispute resolution helps. Delivery is the test.