Potential Saudi investors have been reassured by President Bola Tinubu of the security of the Nigerian investment climate.
President Tinubu highlighted Nigeria’s business readiness and gave investors assurances that the country would see some of the highest returns on investment in the world while speaking at the Saudi-Africa Summit in Riyadh.
In an announcement made by his Special Advisor on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, President Tinubu said that Nigeria is presently undergoing an economic diversification process with the goal of achieving long-term growth and reducing its reliance on oil.
The President underlined Nigeria’s resolve to bolster cooperation with Saudi Arabia in combating terrorist groups like as Boko Haram, ISWAP, and other violent extremist organizations. These things have been wreaking havoc in the Sahel and Lake Chad areas.
He said:
“Nigeria and Saudi Arabia have always enjoyed a special relationship at both the bilateral and multilateral levels. Within the past six decades, our bilateral cooperation, which was initially hajj-centric, has witnessed diversification to cover several areas of common interest.
“It is delightful to note the presence in this great Kingdom of a large number of our compatriots and professionals, including highly skilled medical practitioners and professional football players.
“As members of several international organizations, including the UN, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the International Energy Forum, the G77, the Islamic Development Bank, and the Digital Cooperation Organization, among others, our two nations have effectively used these and other platforms to enhance close interaction and coordination.
“I am confident that our joint positive disposition within these platforms will continue to be demonstrated as we seek to advance our mutual interests.”
The President also stated that Nigeria is looking for a bilateral relationship with access to a wide range of trade and investment opportunities.
He said that the nation is proposing plans to shift its reliance on oil as its main source of income from other economic sectors.
“Nigeria, like the Kingdom, is diversifying its economy away from oil dependence to promote sustainable development.
My administration has undertaken bold economic reforms by removing wasteful subsidies on petroleum and merging our foreign exchange market, among other incentives aimed at improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria.
“I also wish to assure all potential Saudi investors of the safety of their investments based on the sanctity of the rule of law and good returns on their investments in the largest economy in Africa.
In this regard, the benefit attached to the early inauguration of the Nigeria-Saudi Business Council cannot be over-emphasized,” the President added.
An agreement on cooperation in oil and gas was previously inked by Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.
Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources in Nigeria, says as much.
He said that the countries’ Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which was signed during the Saudi-Arab-African Economic Conference in Riyadh, is specifically designed to achieve certain objectives in the oil and gas sector with the aim of promoting development and prosperity in Nigeria’s energy sector.
He said,
“For cooperation in our oil and gas sector, we are intensifying our friendly ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia based on the principle of equality and mutual benefits.
We have, therefore, entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set a framework of cooperation between us and to promote collaboration and strengthen our partnership in the oil and gas sector for mutual benefit.
“From this, we can anticipate enhanced technological exchange, investment inflow and a strengthened strategic partnership, paving the way for sustainable growth and prosperity in our energy landscape.”