Nigeria has unveiled a new online giving platform that it hopes will bring in donors to support and invest in sustainable agriculture, renewable energy transitions and the startup sector. 

Announced at this year’s African Diaspora Investment Symposium held at Silicon Valley, the ‘i philanthropy’ platform is part of a push by Nigerian president Bola Tinubu in bringing expertise from the African diaspora in a bid to make one million jobs in the next four years. 

Tinubu is also hoping to raise $200 million in start-up capital for small businesses in the country.  

Thelma Ekiyor-Solanke, chair of the Nigeria Philanthropy Office, said the i philanthropy platform is one solution that will ‘democratise philanthropy giving by enabling individuals to become philanthropists’. 

‘Donors can decide the sector or state in Nigeria they would like to support and trakc their giving periodically,’ she added. 

The i philanthropy project is funded by Wema Bank, a commercial Nigerian bank. Donors can provide a minimum of $2. 

According to a report published by the African Philanthropy Forum, Nigerian philanthropists have donated $434.17 million in the last five years inside the country.  

The African Diaspora Investment Symposium also took place in Silicon Valley, bringing private high net wealth enterprise connected to the region with public bodies such as governmental agency USAID.  

During the three days conference, a keynote talk discussed the importance of Africa transitioning from crisis management and humanitarian assistance to proactive investment in long-term development initiatives.  

At a plenary session called ‘Exploring the Impact: the President’s African Diaspora Engagement Council’, speakers called on reducing investment in short term crisis and tap into a diaspora Africans aiming to channel resources toward building adaptive capacity in vulnerable communities with dwindling economic resilience. 

Shafi Musaddique is the news editor at Alliance Magazine.