Africa Finance Corporation is seeking to unlock more of Nigeria’s long-term domestic savings for infrastructure investment through a new fund focused on projects designed to withstand the growing risks posed by climate change.

AFC Capital Partners, the asset-management subsidiary of Africa Finance Corporation, launched the Infrastructure Climate-Resilient Fund Nigeria (ICRF Nigeria) on August 24, creating a dedicated platform for Nigerian institutional investors to invest in climate-resilient infrastructure in Nigeria and across Africa.

The fund is registered with Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission as a closed-end vehicle and is aimed at pension fund administrators, insurance companies, asset managers and other institutional investors.

The initiative forms part of AFC Capital Partners’ broader $750 million Infrastructure Climate-Resilient Fund, which seeks to integrate climate considerations into infrastructure projects from planning and design through construction and operation.

The broader fund is designed to address two challenges facing Africa at the same time: a major infrastructure financing gap and the increasing vulnerability of infrastructure to climate-related risks.

AFC says Africa holds more than $4 trillion in domestic resources, including significant pools of long-term capital held by pension funds, insurers and sovereign wealth funds. Much of that money, however, remains invested in relatively low-risk instruments rather than being channelled into productive infrastructure and other long-term investments.

ICRF Nigeria is intended to help change that equation by creating a structured route for domestic institutional capital to participate in infrastructure investments.

The Nigerian fund is targeting around $150 million, according to Nigerian business media, with capital raising and deployment now expected to become the immediate priorities. AFC Capital Partners has said it expects the first investment from the Nigerian vehicle before the end of 2026, with renewable energy and transport among the sectors initially being considered.

At the continental level, AFC Capital Partners expects the wider ICRF platform to mobilise up to $3.7 billion in total financing and develop a portfolio of around 10 to 12 infrastructure projects across Africa.

The structure also relies on blended finance to reduce investment risks. The Green Climate Fund has committed first-loss capital to the wider ICRF, helping absorb part of the potential losses and making the infrastructure assets more attractive to institutional investors. The European Investment Bank and other development finance institutions are also involved in the broader initiative.

The sectors targeted by the fund include renewable energy, transport and logistics, digital infrastructure and industrial development. Projects will be assessed for their exposure to climate risks, with resilience incorporated into their design and operation.

For Nigeria, the initiative comes as authorities seek to mobilise more domestic capital to finance infrastructure while reducing dependence on foreign financing.

For AFC, the strategy represents a broader effort to connect Africa’s long-term savings with the continent’s long-term development needs.

If the fund succeeds in attracting pension and insurance capital at scale, it could provide a new source of financing for infrastructure while giving Nigerian institutional investors greater exposure to long-term assets linked to Africa’s economic growth and climate resilience.