By Anita Dennis
The Federal government’s push to diversify its export base is gaining new financing support as the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM) engages the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector, the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDB), on structured non-interest funding options targeted at small and medium-scale exporters.
The engagement, held at NEXIM Bank’s headquarters in Abuja, brought together senior officials from both institutions to advance modalities for Shariah-compliant credit lines and investment instruments designed to strengthen Nigeria’s non-oil export ecosystem.
The visiting delegation was led by Mr. Muhammad Adnan Hasan, Senior Principal Investment Officer at the Islamic Corporation for the Development (ICD), while NEXIM Bank was represented by its Managing Director and Chief Executive, Mr. Abba Bello, alongside Executive Director for Corporate Services, Mr. Khalil Gaga, and other senior management staff.
At the centre of the discussions was the establishment and finalisation of frameworks for non-interest banking loans and lines of credit. These instruments are expected to provide de-risked financing channels for export-oriented SMEs, a segment that continues to face structural constraints in accessing affordable credit.
The proposed financing structure is anchored on Islamic finance principles, which prohibit interest-based lending and instead rely on asset-backed, risk-sharing and trade-linked arrangements. For Nigeria, the relevance of this model lies in its potential to expand funding sources beyond conventional capital markets while reducing exposure to interest rate volatility.
According to both institutions, the collaboration is designed to support SMEs operating in the non-oil export sector, an area that has become central to Nigeria’s diversification strategy. The focus includes agriculture, light manufacturing and value-added processing, sectors with export potential but persistent financing gaps.
The partnership also reflects a broader shift in development finance architecture, where multilateral and quasi-sovereign institutions are increasingly deploying blended and thematic financing tools to unlock private sector participation in emerging markets. Instruments such as Sukuk and other non-interest credit lines are becoming more prominent in this configuration, particularly in economies seeking alternative liquidity pools.
For NEXIM, the engagement aligns with its mandate to facilitate export growth through targeted credit interventions and risk mitigation support.
