The Federal Government has disbursed the sum of $68.36 million to 28 states under the States Action on Business Enabling Reforms Programme.
The programmed is a $750m loan initiative supported by the World Bank to improve the ease of doing business across Nigeria.
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Lydia Jafiya, disclosed this in Abuja at the 2025 National Sensitisation Workshop on the SABER Programme.
The workshop, organised by the Programme Coordinating Unit in collaboration with the World Bank, brought together states commissioners of finance, heads of ministerial departments and agencies, as well as SABER focal persons to discuss the implementation of key business reforms at the state level.
According to Jafiya, 33 states, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), had signed the Subsidiary Loan Agreement, with 28 states receiving between $1 million and $4 million as part of the Prior Results Disbursements.
She explained that the funds were released to help states implement reforms that enhance business competitiveness, streamline regulations, and improve investment policies.
The permanent secretary acknowledged the resilience of state governments in pursuing the reforms despite initial delays in the programme’s take-off.
She further stated that an Independent Verification Firm had been engaged to conduct performance assessments for 2023 and 2024.
According to Jafiya, lessons learned from the State Fiscal Transparency, Accountability, and Sustainability Programme had significantly improved transparency in business-government relations, optimised land acquisition processes, and strengthened grievance redress mechanisms for businesses.
Other key achievements recorded under the programme include enhanced public-private partnership frameworks, reduced costs of fibre optic deployment for businesses, and improved regulatory efficiency.
The permanent secretary commended the World Bank for its continued support through the SABER Programme and Programme-for-Results financing.
She also acknowledged the contributions of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, and the Debt Management Office, which have played key roles in ensuring the success of the initiative.
Jafiya urged state officials and SABER focal persons to actively participate in discussions and engage with technical assistance partners to ensure a better understanding of the programme’s implementation and also called for improved communication of the programme’s impact to the business and investor community.
