Leaders of some of the strongest EU
countries have agreed, after meetings with Olusegun Aganga, minister of
trade and investment, that trade and investment ties between their
countries and Nigeria must be strengthened at this critical phase of the
world economic history for the benefit of Nigeria and their countries.
For them, in spite of the slow growth in
the advanced economies, the Nigerian economy, which has continued to
grow at about 7 percent in the last 10 years, present huge opportunities
for savvy investors to leverage on.
The President of the Republic of Finland
Sauli Niinisto, who received Aganga on Wednesday in Helsinki, Finland,
said there was a new world emerging in favour of African economies,
noting that Nigeria’s indices were particularly impressive.
He said Finland would put machineries in
motion to ensure that economic ties between Nigeria and Finland were
strengthened, and to directly or indirectly support Finnish companies to
invest in Nigeria. The result of the trade and investment
collaboration, he said, could only be beneficial to both countries.
The minister of European affairs and
foreign trade, Finland, Alexander Stubb, who disclosed that bilateral
trade between Nigeria and Finland was currently 23 million euro, added
that the two countries must begin to explore their comparative and
competitive advantages for a win-win trade and investment relationship.
Stubb said only three EU countries,
including Finland, were rated “triple A” by international rating
agencies, adding that anyone doing business with Finland had nothing to
fear because “a Finnish handshake is something you can trust.” As the
first step in the efforts towards strong economic ties with Nigeria,
Stubb said he would lead a trade delegation to Nigeria as early 2013.
Aganga, however, said the 23 million
euro trade between the two countries was poor, urging the business
delegation from both countries to come up with sound ideas and
strategies to increase activities and enhance inclusive economic growth
in Nigeria.
“In Nigeria, the administration of
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is doing everything possible to make
the Nigerian environment friendlier for businesses to thrive. Unlike in
the developed economies, where the situation is generally low growth,
low returns, in Nigeria, the story is that of high growth, high
returns,” he said.
On her part, the minister of enterprise,
Sweden, Annie Loof, said on Thursday in Stockholm, during a meeting
with her Nigerian counterpart, Olusegun Aganga, that manufacturing
contribution 25 percent to GDP in Sweden, while 80 percent of global
technology in mining was from Swedish companies.
She added that Sweden was EU’s largest
producer of iron ore, reiterating that the current trend in the global
economy provided a good opportunity for Nigeria and Sweden to harness
their respective strengths for strong, sustainable growth.
She noted that 99 percent of companies
in Sweden were small and medium enterprises, adding that the government
was working on a holistic strategy to see that there was more of
innovation in SMEs.
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