German investors widen search nets for opportunities in Nigeria
By A group of German investors will be in Abuja meeting next week to meet with Nigerian Government officials led by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo after which they move to Lagos as they widen search nets for more business opportunities in Africa’s biggest economy.
The volume of trade between Nigeria and Germany fell to 3.5billion Euro in 2016, a drop of about 2.5billion Euro from 6billion Euro recorded in 2015 as recession driven uncertainties affected foreign direct investment (FDI).
Nigeria exports majorly crude oil to Germany while Germany exports machineries, plants and equipment/spare parts to Nigeria.
With gradual transition from recession and boosting of the economy again, in 2018, Nigeria remains the hub for foreign direct investment, according to Marc Lucassen, head of delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Nigeria.
He spoke Wednesday ahead of the forthcoming 7th German-Nigeria Business Forum holding in Lagos from 20th to 21st June where German foreign investors will meet Nigerian public and private sector leaders to discuss the opportunities in diverse sectors of the economy.
Yusuf Tuggar, Ambassador of Nigeria to Germany will be in attendance while Okechukwu Enelamah, minister of industry, trade and investment and Yewande Sadiku, chief executive officer, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) are keynote speakers.
The two-day event themed “Leveraging Partnership for Economic Growth” will extensively highlight the importance and implementation of partnership at different levels and sectors in promoting economic growth for both Nigeria and Germany.
Key areas of focus are Agribusiness and Food Processing; Energy, with a special focus on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency; Infrastructure and Access to Finance; Digitalization and Startups; and Technical Vocational Education and Training.
The 7th German-Nigeria Business Forum will feature panel discussions by different experts and stakeholders on the opportunities, challenges and latest developments in these fields.
Currently, there are not less than 85 German Companies in Nigeria employing about 10,000 Nigerians.
“Our role is to enlighten German investors to see the opportunities in Nigeria. The German-Nigeria Business Forum is a worthy example of the long history of socio-economic relations between Germany and Nigeria dating back 160 years,” Lucassen said.
“Over the years, there have been initiatives to establish a collaborative and mutually beneficial bi-lateral relationship across broad-ranging sectors including diplomacy, security as well as trade and investment. The German-Nigeria Business Forum (GNBF), which holds alternately in Germany and Nigeria was initiated for this purpose by the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Nigeria, the Nigeria-German Business Association and the Afrika-Verein der deutschen Wirtschaft back in 2007,” he further stated.
The post German investors widen search nets for opportunities in Nigeria appeared first on BusinessDay : News you can trust.