On Wednesday, a 16-member Russian delegation representing various companies expressed their willingness to collaborate and invest in Nigeria.
Mr Ivan Klevtsov, the delegation’s leader and CEO of Metalwork, a Russian-based manufacturing and engineering firm, stated this at the Nigeria-Russia Business Meeting in Abuja.
The event was organized by the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) in collaboration with NACCIMA, the Nigerian Diaspora Organization Russia (NIDO), and the Nigerian Embassy in Russia.
Klevtsov stated that they were interested in exploring the Nigerian market’s demand and developing market enterprise.
The plan, he says, is to establish a service center for Russian manufacturers.
“People can easily maintain products made by Russian firms and Nigerian firms producing similar products.”
“We intend to open a technical support station for production in Nigeria, which will reduce the importation of equipment parts,” he said.
According to Klevtsov, the companies are considering investing in gas and oil, mineral development, security, and financing technology.
Earlier, Prof. Abdullahi Shehu, Nigeria’s Ambassador to the Russian Republic, stated that Russia has a lot of potential for Africa.
“The challenges for Russia are therefore to understand Africa, to open up, and to be ready to do business with Africa.”
He urged the private sector to be actively involved in business and to establish networks with the business community, noting that this would increase trade volume.
“I don’t want to come across as dissatisfied with the trade volume because it was less than $300 million two years ago, and for us to reach $600 million despite the impact of COVID-19 is a significant progress.”
“We commend ourselves, but there is always room for improvement, which is why we’re here today,” Shehu said.
Mr Jani Ibrahim, 2nd Deputy President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA), stated that the meeting would deepen both countries’ bilateral relations for inclusive economic growth.
According to Ibrahim, NACCIMA assures you that the Nigerian private sector is committed to collaborating with the Russian private sector in order to increase our trade volumes.
“NACCIMA recommends that Nigeria and Russia elevate their bilateral relations to a new level of functional cooperation, a key and strategic economic sample, in order to increase both the quantity and quality of trade and investments,” Ibrahim said.
Dr. Al-Mujtaba Abubakar, President of ACCI, stated in his speech that Nigeria required Russian technology to accelerate industrialization.
Abubakar, who was represented by Victoria Akai, Director General of ACCI, stated that Russia requires Nigeria as a market for its industrial products and military equipment.
“There is little evidence that the two countries have a sufficient and adequate perception of one another.” This is partly to blame for the lack of political will to implement existing bilateral agreements,” Abubakar explained.
He emphasized that both countries’ commitment to deepen bilateral trade would significantly increase trade volume.
“Although trade volume between Nigeria and Russia remains low, at less than a billion dollars, as both countries have reaffirmed their commitment to significantly increasing trade volume, it is an opportunity to expand our trade volumes.”
“Nigeria is a West African economic powerhouse, one of Africa’s fastest growing economies, and the country with the largest population, according to World Trade Organization estimates.”
“As of the first quarter of 2021, Nigeria has an estimated current total export of over 53 billion USD and imports of over 47 billion USD, with an average GDP of USD 448 billion,” he said.
Mr. Uwem Samson, Chairman of NIDO-Russia, stated that the business meeting would allow the delegation to learn more about Nigeria and that they would share their findings with the larger business community in Russia.
Discussion about this post