Nigeria, Japan sign deal to back startups with $50m innovation fund

Nigeria and Japan have joined forces to launch a $50 million fund targeting startups working on solutions to the country’s most pressing social problems.

The deal was sealed last Friday in Abuja, where the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and Japan’s development agency (JICA) signed the agreements that formally brought the fund to life.

The money is coming from multiple sources. JICA is contributing $14 million in grants, NSIA is putting in up to $20 million, and the balance is expected to come from private investors. The fund will operate as an onshore public vehicle, meaning it’s structured locally and open to Nigerian founders building in sectors like healthcare, education, food security, and financial inclusion.

Startups receiving funding will benefit from hands-on technical support, product development assistance, scaling expertise, and guidance on entering new markets, in addition to capital.

Japan’s first bet on startups of this kind, anywhere in the world

What makes this fund particularly interesting is what it represents for Japan’s foreign policy playbook.

According to the Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Suzuki Hideo, this project is Japan’s first-ever use of a development model that blends official development aid with private capital, and Nigeria is where they’re testing it first. That’s not a small thing. Tokyo is apparently watching closely.

The model, which Japan calls “co-creation,” is about building social value through genuine collaboration rather than top-down aid.

L- R: Pius Osiriamhe Anyiador, Head, Nigeria Infrastructure Fund NSIA; Keji Ishigame, Country Rep, JICA; Aminu Umar-Sadiq, MD & CEO, NSIA; Teslim Abass, Project Lead, JICA at the recently concluded Agreement Signing Ceremony of the $50 million NSIA and JICA Innovation Fund. Credit: NSIA

The idea is that startups in the recipient country co-develop solutions with Japanese partners, while private finance fills gaps that traditional official development assistance (ODA) can’t. It’s a newer, more market-oriented approach to development cooperation, and Nigeria is its debut stage.

NSIA’s CEO Aminu Umar-Sadiq framed the fund as exactly what the ecosystem has been missing: capital that meets founders early, before they’ve proven themselves to traditional investors, paired with the kind of support that helps them actually grow.

The fund is not yet fully running. NSIA is identifying startups that align with its investment goals: those in key sectors with the potential for significant social impact and that are still in their early stages. Once a suitable group of startups has been identified, the fund will begin investing.

For Nigerian founders who’ve long complained that impact-driven businesses struggle to attract serious funding, this is at least a signal that the conversation is shifting. Whether the execution matches the ambition is the part worth watching.

Similar read: Nigerian startups raised $343 million in 2025 as venture funding declined by 16.3%

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