Nigeria wants to promote closer agricultural cooperation with Vietnam and its Government will prioritise visa applications from Vietnamese investors, and specialists, confirmed the Nigerian charge d’affaires Sani Bako.
The Nigerian diplomat stated this at a seminar on Vietnamese-Nigerian cooperation in business and investment in Hanoi on April 23.
He went on to say that Nigeria’s agricultural sector has a vast amount of potential, especially for producing rice, adding that his country will not only provide huge tracts of land but will also create a stable and supportive environment for investments to grow.
It will be extremely profitable for Vietnamese businesses to enter into joint partnerships with Nigerians by providing technical support, similar to the current two plus one arrangement between Vietnam, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and a number of African countries, said Mr Bako.
He also suggested that both countries take a fresh look at key areas such as oil and gas, manufacturing, shipping, construction, agriculture, transportation, engineering, telecommunications and education amongst others.
He stressed on the need for a direct air link between Nigeria and Vietnam to reduce the enormous distance that separates the two countries.
On the sidelines of the seminar, the President of the Nigerian-Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Oye Akinsemoyin, told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) that both countries could take advantage of their individual strengths. Nigeria has vast amounts of fertile land and a high market demand while Vietnam uses advanced agriculture techniques and has a big financial potential, plus both countries have similar soil and temperatures.
“Vietnam has always considered Nigeria a promissing market and the gateway to West and Central African nations,” Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Le Danh Vinh told the seminar.
The two countries have signed a trade agreement, including the article on the most-favoured status, thus creating a favourable legal corridor for bilateral trade activities, said Vinh.
However, the Vietnamese trade official pointed out that so far the two countries have failed to meet their full potentials. He added that “the main reasons can be attributed to a lack of information amongst the two business communities, a lack of understanding between partners and the limited trade promotion activities.”
The seminar attracted many businesspeople from both countries including 40 representatives of 25 Nigerian companies and organisations.
The companies attending were from a variety of industries including oil and gas, energy, power, electronics, agriculture, medicine, textiles and garments, finance, banking, printing, mining, telecommunications, shipping, transportation, construction, mechanics and the automobile industry.
Earlier, the Nigerian delegation had attended a similar held in Ho Chi Minh City on April 20.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, two-way trade between Nigeria and Vietnam rose to more than 105 million USD in 2008 , a substantial increase from the 55 million USD recorded in 2007.
Vietnam exports rubber, electronic and electric products, footwear, plastics, handicrafts and construction materials to Nigeria while it imports unprocessed cashew nuts, flowers, fruit, cotton and minerals from the West African country./.