Fraud, weak investor protection threaten diaspora investments – NiDCOM

By Folarin Kehinde The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has identified fraudulent investment schemes, unverified investment channels and weak investor protection as major obstacles to attracting investments from Nigerians living abroad. The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NiDCOM, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, raised the concerns at the opening of the ninth Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit 2026 in Abuja.

She said the challenges had created a trust deficit that must be addressed to encourage more Nigerians in the diaspora to channel their resources into the domestic economy. The summit, organised in collaboration with the Nigeria Diaspora Summit Initiative, has the theme, “Bridging the Trust Gap: Connecting Diaspora Capital with Credible Home-based Opportunities.” Dabiri-Erewa described Nigerians living abroad as a significant economic force, saying their financial resources, expertise and global networks could contribute substantially to Nigeria’s ambition of building a $1tn economy.

She, however, noted that concerns about transparency, fraudulent investment schemes and unreliable investment platforms continued to discourage potential investors. The NiDCOM chief called for effective regulatory safeguards, transparent investment processes and credible investment platforms to protect prospective investors and restore confidence. In his keynote address, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Shehu Usman Osidi, said the country must move beyond appealing to Nigerians abroad to invest and create an environment where they could independently verify, access and monitor investment opportunities from their locations.

Osidi identified fraudulent property transactions, disputed land titles, abandoned projects, unfulfilled contractual obligations and mismanagement of investment funds as some of the factors undermining diaspora investors’ confidence. He called for stronger collaboration among government institutions, regulators and private-sector operators to promote transparency and safeguard diaspora investments.

The FMBN chief executive said the Federal Government had taken steps to strengthen engagement with Nigerians abroad through the establishment of NiDCOM and the adoption of the National Diaspora Policy. He said the policy provided a framework for mobilising diaspora resources through investment, trade, entrepreneurship, public-private partnerships and knowledge transfer.

Osidi also cited reforms under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, particularly those being pursued through the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima. On efforts to address challenges in the housing sector, he disclosed that the FMBN had introduced the National Housing Fund Diaspora Mortgage Product, which was launched in London on August 7, 2026.

According to him, the product was designed to address difficulties Nigerians living abroad face in accessing mortgage facilities and acquiring properties in the country. He added that the bank had established a dedicated Global Business Strategic Unit to coordinate its diaspora operations and improve customer engagement and service delivery. Under the scheme, eligible Nigerians aged between 18 and 70 years living abroad can make monthly contributions of $100, $200 or $300 under the Basic, Classic and Premium categories, respectively.

Osidi, however, stressed that access to mortgage facilities alone would not resolve the trust deficit, adding that collaboration with regulators, state governments, property developers and mortgage institutions was necessary to guarantee genuine property titles, quality construction and timely project completion. Earlier, the Chairman of the Summit Organising Committee and Coordinator of the Nigeria Diaspora Summit Initiative, Mobolaji Lewis, said the 2026 virtual engagement was organised to sustain discussions on diaspora investment despite the decision to scale down the physical summit because of the national election campaign season.

He said the engagement would provide prospective investors with practical information on how to identify and verify credible investment opportunities in Nigeria. Lewis added that the virtual summit would also lay the groundwork for the 10th anniversary edition of the event in 2027.