The Federal Government has constructed and rehabilitated over 4,100 kilometres of roads and nine bridges across the country with Sukuk funds.
The Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Patience Oniha, said this on Wednesday in Lagos during “an all-parties’ meeting” for the issuance of the seventh series of the Sovereign Sukuk funds.”
She said the DMO has raised N1.09 trillion through the Sovereign Sukuk since 2017, to support infrastructure development.
“Following the modest success of the first Sukuk and the achievement recorded from Sept. 2017 to Dec. 2023 when the last Sukuk was issued, the DMO has raised a total of N1.09 trillion.
“With this amount, over 4,100 km of roads and nine bridges across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory have either been constructed or rehabilitated,” the director-general added.
Oniha said that the projects had brought substantial benefits, including reduced travel time, improved road safety and job creation.
She said that the projects also created improved access to markets for remote farmers, increased access to public services like education and healthcare, and economic development as a whole.
“In addition to those benefits, other reasons for the sustained issuance are the fact that the Sukuk is project-tied, promotes financial inclusion and contributes to the development of the domestic financial market,” she said.
Oniha also stated that the Sukuk had been well accepted as demonstrated by the level of subscription received in the past.
She said that investors got the fulfillment of contributing to infrastructure development, and also got a return in terms of income which is paid every six months.
Financial advisers represented at the meeting include, Lotus Financial Services Limited, Buraq Capital Limited, Stanbic IBTC Capital limited and Greenwich Merchant Bank Limited and Vetiva Capital Management Limited.
They play a crucial role in the issuance of Sovereign Sukuk, assisting the Federal Government of Nigeria through DMO.
Their responsibilities include advising on the structure of the Sukuk, managing the offering process, and facilitating investor participation.
