President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria has announced that China’s Exim bank will loan Nigeria $328 million for the National Information and Communication Technology Infrastructure Backbone Phase 11 (NICTIB 11) project
The deal is the latest in a number of Chinese loans to Nigeria since Buhari took office in 2015, comes as Beijing seeks to deepen its ties in Africa.
According to the Presidency in a communique, the loan is aimed at developing Information and Communications Technology in Nigeria and would be executed by Galaxy Backbone Limited of Nigeria and Huawei Technologies Limited (HUAWEI) of China at the cost of the $328m facility that would be provided by the Chinese EXIM Bank.
The statement further stressed that the agreement was part of “the current administration’s commitment to incorporating the development of Information and Communications Technology into National Strategic Planning”.
The Nigerian government has said it wants to improve the country’s technology infrastructure to boost growth and create jobs as it seeks to reduce reliance on oil sales, which make up around two thirds of government revenues.