Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, and his UK counterpart and Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
Nigeria and the UK have agreed to fast-track key regulations to deepen the insurance market and expand the digital economy.
Also, both governments agreed to explore Naira-denominated financial instruments to facilitate British brands positioning and investments in Nigeria.
These are some of the resolutions by Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah and his UK counterpart and Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, at the First joint Economic Development Forum (EDF) held in Abuja on Tuesday.
The EDF was launched in August 2018 by President Muhammadu Buhari and Prime Minister Theresa May to foster economic and development ties between Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
A communique at the end of the meeting said both countries noted the progress so far against their commitments as well as the successes achieved.
Modalities
Both countries agreed to sustain improvements in the efficiency of Nigeria’s international airports and the UK government’s commitment to boost the capacity of its national carriers.
The communique said the joint efforts will support Nigeria’s export diversification drive and help non-oil exporters reach third market destinations through London, pending improvements in trade facilitation in the ports.
Other resolutions include consultations with the Nigerian and British business communities on joint work-streams and actions required to boost bilateral trade and investment.
Also, the meeting agreed on the UK government’s commitment to providing more technical assistance to Nigeria’s exports diversification efforts, attracting investment and creation of jobs.
The two countries also resolved to showcase the quality of Nigerian and British goods and services in their respective markets.
Mr Enelamah said this will enable more Nigerian exports to comply with global standards for better bilateral trade and investment.
2020 Summit
An Africa Investment Summit is planned for the United Kingdom in 2020 to present a strong pipeline of projects Nigeria is seeking partnerships with
