NOA FAULTS RECENT ANALYSIS BY NAIRAMETRICS ON NIGERIA'S Q12026 CAPITAL IMPORTATION REPORT.
The National Orientation Agency, NOA, has criticised a recent analysis by Nairametrics on Nigeria’s Q1 2026 Capital Importation Report, saying the publication used the wrong measurement framework and failed to capture key domestic and offshore investments supporting the Federal Government’s economic reforms.
In a policy digest authored by Public Relations Specialist, Olabode Opeseitan, NOA said the report focused mainly on capital recorded through Nigerian commercial banks, while excluding other forms of investment such as offshore financing, intra-company transfers, reinvested earnings, and capital deployed directly by international contractors.
The agency cited major investments in the oil and gas sector, including 28 Field Development Plans approved by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources in 2025, valued at 18.2 billion dollars. It also mentioned Shell’s 20-billion-dollar Bonga South West Aparo deepwater project, with Final Investment Decision expected in 2027.
NOA explained that international oil companies often finance large-scale deepwater projects through offshore syndication, internal balance sheets and reserve-based lending facilities, which do not pass through Nigerian commercial banks and are therefore not captured in the capital importation figures.
The agency, however, acknowledged that Nairametrics was correct in reporting that of the 47.6 billion dollars in capital importation recorded since May 2023, only about 1.9 billion dollars represented conventional Foreign Direct Investment, while the majority came from portfolio investments.
NOA said the main issue with the analysis was not accuracy but the context, arguing that focusing only on what the capital was not doing ignored broader investment activities taking place in the economy.
The agency stressed that understanding how capital enters Nigeria, and not just the amount involved, is important for investors, policymakers and citizens in assessing the country’s economic progress.
