Business
AfDB Pledges $100m For Nigerian Youth Bank, Targets $2bn For Youth-Led Businesses
President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has announced a $100 million commitment towards the creation of the Nigerian Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank, aimed at catalysing $2 billion in investments to support over 38,000 youth-led businesses across Africa.
Adesina made the announcement during a televised interview on national television, noting that the initiative is part of the AfDB’s wider strategy to harness the continent’s youth population—over 465 million people aged 15 to 35—as a powerful economic engine.
He also expressed concern over the growing trend of youth emigration from Nigeria and other African nations, commonly referred to as the Japa phenomenon.
Adesina described it as a “big loss” for the continent and a sign of the failure to adequately invest in the potential of Africa’s young people.
“Young people don’t need freebies,” Adesina declared.
“They don’t need people saying: ‘I just want to give you an empowerment programme’. They have skills, they have knowledge, they have entrepreneurship capacity. They want to turn their ideas into great businesses.”
According to the former Nigerian agriculture minister, Africa’s youth crisis is not one of numbers, but of opportunity.
“We have over 465 million young people between the ages of 15 and 35,” he said.
“The problem is not their population, it is what you do with your population; how you skill them up.”
Adesina argued that the exodus of young Africans to Europe, North America, and Asia is the result of a financial system that neglects them.
“The whole of the (banking) system is not designed for young people,” he lamented.
“The commercial banking system and the financial system failed young people in Africa. Why is it suddenly a surprise to us that they are leaving? It’s because you are not putting anything down for them.”
In response, the AfDB, he revealed, has launched the Youth Entrepreneurship Development Bank, specifically designed to provide access to capital for young Africans with viable business plans. The newly approved Nigerian Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank, he noted, is the first such effort under this initiative.
“We just approved $100 million to set up the Nigerian Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank,” Adesina revealed.
“The goal is to mobilise $2 billion of investment for more than 38,000 businesses of young people in Africa.”
He criticised traditional empowerment schemes that hand out small stipends, arguing that such approaches are ineffective in unlocking long-term potential.
He said: “They don’t need N5,000 or N10,000. You want to create youth-based wealth. If you don’t, who are the people who will pay the taxes in the future? Where are you going to get the capital mobilisation in the future?”
For Adesina, the stakes are high. He warned that failing to convert Africa’s youth into economic contributors risks turning the continent’s greatest asset into a liability.
“You cannot turn your demographic asset into somebody else’s problem,” he cautioned. “We have to put our money behind our young people to create opportunities for them.”
He concluded with a passionate call for belief and investment in Africa’s future: “I do not believe that the future of our young people lies in Europe. It doesn’t lie in America. It doesn’t lie in Canada, Japan, or China. It should lie in Africa growing well, robustly, and able to create quality jobs for our young people.”
Fresh petrol depot prices have emerged across Nigeria as marketers adjust to rising crude oil prices and renewed tensions in the Middle East.
The latest pricing changes come amid growing uncertainty in the global energy market following fresh military exchanges between the United States and Iran near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil transit routes.
ndustry data tracked by PetroleumPriceNG and monitored by Legit.ng show that depot owners raised their Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) prices as a protective measure against potential losses linked to volatile international oil prices.
Global crude oil prices climbed during early trading on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, after the United States launched strikes on Iranian military infrastructure near the Strait of Hormuz.
As of 5:08 a.m. WAT, Brent crude rose by 1.03% to $92.39 per barrel, while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 0.91% to trade at $89.00 per barrel, according to a report by Oilprice.com
The market rally followed reports that American forces targeted Iranian air defence systems, radar installations and surveillance facilities after Washington accused Tehran of bringing down a U.S. Army Apache helicopter operating within the region.
The U.S. Central Command described the strikes as a defensive response. However, Iran denied responsibility for the helicopter incident and accused the United States of escalating tensions unnecessarily. The development has raised fears of a broader regional conflict that could disrupt global crude oil supplies.
Checks across fuel depots nationwide show that marketers have adjusted their petrol prices upward in response to the changing global market conditions.
According to the latest data: AIPEC now sells petrol at N1,247 per litre RainOil Lagos sells at N1,248 per litre Integrated depot price stands at N1,247 per litre Liquid Bulk has also fixed its price at N1,248 per litre Industry experts say the latest adjustments are largely precautionary as marketers attempt to shield themselves from potential losses should crude oil prices continue to rise.
The cost of importing petrol into Nigeria has dropped sharply following the recent decline in global crude oil prices, creating fresh competition for local refiners, including the $20 billion Dangote Refinery.
New data released by the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) shows that the landing cost of imported Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, has fallen to N1,117 per litre.
The figure is now significantly lower than Dangote Refinery’s gantry price of N1,250 per litre, leaving a difference of N133 per litre.
The development comes days after the mega refinery reduced its ex-depot petrol price from N1,275 to N1,250 per litre in response to changing market conditions.
The latest MEMAN pricing template suggests that fuel importers may now enjoy a competitive edge over domestic refiners as international crude prices continue to soften. Aside from petrol, the landing costs of other petroleum products also recorded notable declines.
According to the data, diesel landing cost dropped to N1,470 per litre, compared to Dangote Refinery’s price of N1,700 per litre. Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK), commonly known as aviation fuel, also fell to N1,426 per litre, while Dangote’s price remains N1,650 per litre.
MEMAN estimated the exchange rate for fuel imports at N1,366.85 per dollar, reflecting the prevailing official foreign exchange rate at the time of the calculation.
Some filling stations along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and in other locations across Lagos and Ogun states have reduced petrol prices below N1,300 per litre.
This follows a price cut announced by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Sunday.
The refinery adjusted its ex-depot gantry price of petrol down to N1,250 per litre from N1,275 per litre, while also slashing the price of diesel to N1,700 per litre from N1,800 per litre.
According to Dangote officials, the price review reflects a recent decline in global oil prices and reinforces the company’s commitment to making refined products more affordable while providing cost relief to Nigerian consumers and businesses.
Following the announcement, observations across the Mowe/Ibafo axis of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in Ogun State showed that several independent marketers immediately adjusted their pumps. For instance, MRS filling stations reduced their petrol pump price to N1,286 per litre, NIPCO and Heyden retailed the product at N1,290 per litre, and SGR adjusted its price to N1,297 per litre.
Reductions were also recorded in the diesel market, with many filling stations dropping their prices to N1,800 per litre from the previous N1,900 per litre.
Despite these downward adjustments, many retail outlets still sell petrol above the N1,300 mark. Outlets operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) in Ibafo adjusted their pumps to N1,305 per litre, while Mobil and Asharami sold the product at N1,310 and N1,320 per litre, respectively.
The overall price drop comes after a prolonged period of high fuel costs in Nigeria, which saw petrol skyrocket from N830 per litre to over N1,300 after global crude oil climbed past $115 per barrel due to tensions between the United States and Iran.
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