The Federal Government, FG, through its Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) programme, has announced a milestone by serving as an anchor investor in the first close of a new venture fund, while also confirming plans to launch two additional investment funds in 2026.
The announcement was made in a statement on Monday, detailing the formal kick-off of the iDICE programme’s investing phase.
The iDICE initiative has provided an anchor investment in a new venture fund managed by Ventures Platform, a pan-African seed-stage fund appointed as the Fund Manager for the technology component in August 2025.
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This new fund has achieved a $64 million first-round close based on investor commitments last Thursday, and it targets a final close of $75 million.
iDICE joins prominent institutional investors in the fund, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Standard Bank of South Africa, and British International Investment (BII).
Vice President Kashim Shettima, who chairs the iDICE Steering Committee, described the commencement of investing as an “exciting milestone and a leap forward’ in the government’s determined efforts to unleash the full potential of Nigeria’s young people, aligning with the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Olasupo Olusi, the MD/CEO of the Bank of Industry (BOI), which serves as co-investor and implementing agency, stated that the investment in Ventures Platform’s Fund II deepens the FG’s objective of upscaling the Nigerian technology and creative sectors by catalysing strategic investments in high-growth, technology-enabled enterprises.
This is expected to contribute meaningfully to the nation’s economic transformation, with goals to create jobs at scale and empower high-growth entrepreneurs.
Kola Aina, Founding Partner at Ventures Platform, expressed delight in partnering with the FG and other stakeholders to support Nigerian innovators in “bringing their innovative ideas and solutions to life.”
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iDICE will launch two new funds in 2026, a creative sector fund that will invest in creative sector start-ups and a fund of funds that will invest in smaller funds supporting both technology and creative sector start-ups.
The overall $617 million iDICE programme is supported by financing from the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), and the French Development Agency (AFD), targeting young Nigerians aged 15-35 with skills and resources to increase employability and foster innovation across the digital and creative economy sectors.
