NiDCOM Hosts 9th Diaspora Investment Summit, Moves to Address Trust Deficit in Nigeria’s Investment Sector
The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has reaffirmed its commitment to creating secure, transparent and credible investment opportunities for Nigerians living abroad as it hosted the 9th Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit (NDIS) 2026 in Abuja.
The two-day summit, declared open by the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NiDCOM, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, on Tuesday, November 10, focused on addressing the trust deficit hindering diaspora investments in Nigeria.
Organised in collaboration with the Nigeria Diaspora Summit Initiative (NDSI), the summit was themed, “Bridging the Trust Gap: Connecting Diaspora Capital with Credible Home-based Opportunities.”
The event brought together diaspora investors, government institutions, financial regulators and private-sector stakeholders to explore investment opportunities and strengthen confidence in Nigeria’s investment environment.
Dabiri-Erewa described Nigerians in the diaspora as a formidable economic force, noting that their financial resources, professional expertise and global networks were critical to achieving Nigeria’s $1 trillion economy ambition.
She, however, identified trust and knowledge gaps, fraudulent investment schemes, unverified investment channels and inadequate investor protection as major obstacles discouraging diaspora investments.
She stressed the need for transparency, effective regulatory safeguards and credible investment platforms to attract and sustain investments from Nigerians abroad.
In his keynote address, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), Shehu Usman Osidi, called for stronger institutional collaboration, transparent investment processes and improved investor protection mechanisms.
Osidi said Nigeria must move beyond simply attracting diaspora capital to establishing an investment environment where Nigerians abroad could confidently identify, verify, access and monitor genuine investment opportunities.
He identified weak investment governance, fraudulent property transactions, disputed land titles, abandoned projects, unfulfilled contractual obligations and mismanagement of invested funds as some of the factors undermining investor confidence.
He also acknowledged the Federal Government’s efforts to strengthen diaspora engagement through NiDCOM and the National Diaspora Policy, which provides an institutional framework for mobilising diaspora resources through trade, investment, entrepreneurship, public-private partnerships and knowledge transfer.
Highlighting the FMBN’s intervention, Osidi disclosed that the Bank introduced its National Housing Fund (NHF) Diaspora Mortgage Product, officially launched in London on August 7, 2026.
According to him, the initiative was developed to address challenges faced by Nigerians abroad seeking to own homes in Nigeria, particularly difficulties associated with mortgage accessibility, distance, property transactions and investment security.
He added that the Bank had established a dedicated Global Business Strategic Unit to provide specialised oversight, customer engagement and service delivery for its diaspora operations.
Under the mortgage product, eligible Nigerians aged between 18 and 70 years living abroad can participate through monthly contributions of $100, $200 or $300 under the Basic, Classic and Premium categories, respectively.
Osidi, however, emphasised that access to mortgage finance alone would not eliminate the trust deficit, stressing the importance of collaboration with regulators, state governments, property developers and mortgage institutions to guarantee genuine property titles, quality construction and timely project delivery.
Earlier, Chairman of the Summit Organising Committee and NDIS Coordinator, Mobolaji Lewis, explained that the 2026 virtual engagement was designed to sustain conversations on diaspora investments despite the decision to scale down the physical summit due to the national election campaign season.
He said the summit would provide practical guidance on identifying, verifying and accessing credible investment opportunities while strengthening institutional collaboration.
Lewis also described the engagement as an important foundation for the 10th anniversary edition of the summit scheduled for 2027.
The opening ceremony featured discussions and panel sessions on various investment opportunities in Nigeria
