Nigeria's VP Kashim Shettima pushes states to unlock $750m World Bank SABER fund

Vice President Kashim Shettima urged Nigeria’s state governments to accelerate business‑enabling reforms that would allow full utilisation of the $750 million World Bank‑assisted State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) programme. Speaking at a stakeholder meeting in Abuja, he said the reforms are essential to attract domestic and foreign investment, expand digital and physical infrastructure, improve land access and commercial justice, and boost the competitiveness of the states.

Shettima directed the Director‑General of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), Zarah Mustapha‑Audu, to move toward extending the programme’s lifespan by one year so states can capture all available benefits. He linked the initiative to President Bola Tinubu’s goal of achieving a one‑trillion‑dollar economy and highlighted expected outcomes such as higher productivity, job creation, increased internally generated revenue and better living standards.

Minister of State for Budget and Economic Planning Dr Doris Uzoka‑Anite encouraged stakeholders to address implementation bottlenecks, expressing optimism that the performance‑based intervention will be fully accessed. PEBEC’s DG also affirmed the council’s commitment to removing bureaucratic obstacles and noted progress by participating states in meeting disbursement‑linked indicators.