Large pools of capital controlled by pension funds, insurers, banks and other institutional investors remain an underutilised source of financing for businesses capable of driving inclusive growth and sustainable development.
That challenge will be the focus of the ninth Annual Convening on Impact Investing, scheduled to be held in Lagos on November 25 and 26, 2026, by the Impact Investors Foundation (IIF).
The two-day gathering, themed “Unlocking Institutional Capital for Nigeria’s Impact Economy,” will focus on the limited participation of large domestic institutional investors in financing investment-ready enterprises, considered one of the central challenges confronting the country’s impact investment market.
Nigeria has significant pools of capital held by pension funds, insurance companies, banks, sovereign vehicles, development finance institutions, endowments and other wholesale investment structures. Yet only a relatively small proportion of those funds reaches enterprises and sectors positioned to support inclusive growth and sustainable development.
The challenge has become increasingly important as Nigeria seeks alternative ways to finance its economic development amid pressure on public finances and continued constraints on access to affordable capital.
Etemore Glover, chief executive officer of IIF, said the discussions would focus on how institutional investors could play a more significant role in financing the real economy.
“In recent times, we have engaged in serious conversations on how institutional capital can contribute significantly to the real economy and foster socioeconomic and environmental development in Nigeria,” Glover said.
“Some progress has been made. However, is it enough, given the scale of development challenges relative to the opportunities present in a country as large as ours?,” she added.
According to Glover, this year’s convening will bring institutional investors into discussions as partners in designing a stronger impact economy for Nigeria.
A major focus of the debate is the question of how Nigeria can mobilise more of its domestic savings for productive investment.
Institutional investors typically manage large pools of long-term capital, making them potentially important sources of financing for infrastructure, growing businesses, climate solutions and other sectors with long-term funding requirements.
However, directing such capital towards impact-focused investments requires appropriate market infrastructure, investment structures, risk-management frameworks and a sufficiently strong pipeline of investable businesses.
The IIF convening will examine the policy and market conditions needed to increase institutional participation in Nigeria’s impact economy.
Discussions are expected to explore practical pathways for pension funds, insurance companies, sovereign vehicles, banks, development finance institutions, endowments and wholesale investment structures to take a larger role in financing the economy.
The programme will also focus on strengthening policies for domestic capital mobilisation, improving investment strategies and deal structuring, building a stronger pipeline of investment-ready enterprises and improving ecosystem capacity, transparency and impact standards.
SMEs to meet investors
A major component of the convening will be the effort to connect investment-ready small and medium-sized enterprises with institutional and impact investors through curated deal rooms.
Access to finance remains one of the biggest constraints facing Nigerian businesses, particularly enterprises that have progressed beyond the earliest stages but are not yet large enough to access conventional institutional financing easily.
The deal rooms are expected to create opportunities for investors and businesses to engage more directly around potential transactions.
The event will also officially unveil the rebranded Nigerian Impact Economy Community, bringing together stakeholders from the public, private and development sectors around a shared agenda for advancing the country’s impact economy.
Beyond capital mobilisation, the convening will examine several sectors and themes considered important to Nigeria’s long-term economic transformation.
These include climate resilience, the creative economy, investment strategies and readiness, as well as the use of artificial intelligence in environmental, social and governance risk assessment.
Building on eight years of engagement
Over the past eight years, the Annual Convening on Impact Investing has provided a meeting point for participants across Nigeria’s impact investment ecosystem to exchange ideas and explore ways of mobilising domestic capital for inclusive growth.
The ninth edition comes as attention increasingly shifts from identifying Nigeria’s financing challenges to developing practical structures capable of moving capital into the real economy.
The event will also feature the 2026 IIF Annual Impact Investing Awards, which recognise organisations advancing impact investment and delivering measurable social and environmental outcomes.
Awards will include Impact Investor of the Year, Social Enterprise of the Year and the Innocent Chukwuma Award for Social Impact.
The ninth Annual Convening on Impact Investing will be held in Lagos on November 25 and 26, 2026. Registration details are available through the ACII 2026 registration platform.
