Nigerians, especially those in diaspora, have been advised to seize the investment opportunities provided by the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) across the country.
Managing Director/CEO, NEPZA, Dr. Olufemi Ogunyemi, gave this advice recently while participating at a UK-Nigeria Ministerial meeting.
UK Minister for Trade, Sir Chris Bryant MP, and Nigeria’s Minister for Industry, Trade, and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole MFR, co-hosted the first ministerial meeting of the UK-Nigeria Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership (ETIP).
The Head of Corporate Communications, NEPZA, Martins Odeh, in a statement made available on Monday, said Dr. Ogunyemi’s participation in the high-level meeting served as an opportunity for NEPZA to align and realign with the new trade facilitation policy of the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe.
He recalled that earlier in the year, Dr Ogunyemi had stretched the limit to break long years of non-exploitation of available trade and investment opportunities with the embassies of the European Union in Abuja.
This one attempt, according to him, has increased interest among EU members in doing business in the Free Trade Zones.
Again, he said the NEPZA boss used a similar strategy during a sideline event in Marlborough, with the theme “Deepening Trade & Business Relationships towards a Mutually Prosperous Economy,” in which he described the Authority’s role as the main driver of Nigeria’s non-oil exports.
Odeh said while recounting the current status of the 63 Free Trade Zones and the over 700 enterprises operating within them, Dr. Ogunyemi invited UK investors to test their production lines in the free zones, assuring them that their investments would be protected by incentives and security.
He noted that NEPZA was creating a supportive business environment as outlined in its Act, and mentioned that the Authority was working closely with the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) and the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA) to expand investment opportunities in the country.
Dr. Ogunyemi urged Nigerians in the diaspora to take advantage of the president’s new, actionable Industrial Policy by investing in NEPZA free trade zones, noting that the scheme’s 100 percent profit repatriation policy is unmatched.
“I have begun the trade and investment promotion diplomacy by attending the Commonwealth Day Celebration organised by the Royal Commonwealth Society, the Commonwealth Investment Network Summit, the Commonwealth Foundation, and the First Bank UK meeting. I sincerely thank the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment and the President for the opportunity to attempt to attract FDI to the free trade zones,’’ Dr. Ogunyemi said.
In conclusion, NEPZA said early signs of success are emerging in expanding trade, capital, and industrial partnerships for shared prosperity, fuelled by strong interest among UK investors eager to invest in Nigeria.
“It cannot be overstated that the president has truly helped break down the major barrier to attracting FDI from the UK to Nigeria through his visit to King Charles III and his pragmatic macroeconomic reforms,” the Authority said in the statement.
