James Emejo in Abuja
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Richard Adebayo, has said the federal government is focused on creating a non-oil export-oriented economy within the next few years.
He said the new national ethos envisages a Nigeria that is export-oriented, high producing, high growth and which offers productive infrastructure for both small and large businesses.
Speaking while making a presentation at the Nigeria Investment Showcase in London, he noted that government had already started implementing the new initiatives.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr Julius Toba-Jegede, the minister said the reforms were tailored at incentivising investors, es, bilateral agreements and providing a pipeline of continuous opportunities.
He described the plan as ambitious and sets out to achieve transformational economic growth, by leveraging demographic dividends and comparative advantage in mineral deposits and agriculture to provide an opportunity for long-term oriented investors.
Adebayo said: “These pipelines of investment opportunities include, but are not limited to the development of six special zones, the establishment of several agro-processing zones and the development of a national trading platform.
“Our focus in the next decade is to build capacity for production and further support our service economy. This requires prioritising local manufacturing and deploying large-scale capital in high-impact infrastructure projects, export-focused production, supply chain and logistics, market access and R&D.”
The event, which was organised by the UK Department for International Trade (UK DIT) in partnership with the City of London, aimed at showcasing some of the country’s most promising projects.
