Nigeria is the best and most natural destination for investment in Africa, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has said.
Osinbajo said this Wednesday at a meeting with Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
He said the Socialist Republic of Vietnam can leverage on the cherished friendship with Nigeria to gain entry into its and African vast markets.
He said there was the need for Vietnam to deepen the existing diplomatic relations with Nigeria for economic development, especially in the areas of agriculture, telecommunications and oil and gas.
He said Nigeria remains the most intuitive place to do business, stressing that despite the economic slowdown in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, its GDP growth has been positive for the last seven quarters.
“Apart from being the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria also has the continent’s largest economy, accounting for over 20% of continental GDP.
“The Nigerian private sector has undertaken large path-breaking investments in the country in agriculture, manufacturing, petrochemicals, finance, telecommunications and the digital economy.
“Our people are renowned for being energetic and tech-savvy, with over 60% of the population below 25 years of age.
“Between 2015 and last year, 6 Nigerian tech-based companies have been certified as unicorns. These are companies valued at over a billion US dollars each.
“Nigeria is also now home to over 200 stand-alone FinTech companies, plus a number of FinTech solutions offered by banks and mobile network operators as part of their product portfolio. Between 2014 and 2019, Nigeria’s bustling FinTech segment raised over $600 million in funding and attracted a quarter of the almost $500 million raised by African tech startups in 2019 alone.
“The creative sector which employs over 4 million people and has the potential to add 2.7 million by 2025, is ranked the second largest employer of labour after the agricultural sector.
“We are on course to become the 3rd largest national market, based on headcount by the year 2050. We are already the largest financial market in Africa with a market capitalization in excess of US$50 billion as of the end of last year,” he said.
Osinbajo said the government is looking forward to a greater number of Vietnamese investments in Nigeria and Africa by extension.
“Nigeria offers one of the best investment destinations in Africa, some of the best investment conditions in Africa because, among other things, Nigeria is the gateway to Africa.
“We believe that if Vietnam investments come into Nigeria, it will have the potential of penetrating the gates of West Africa and the entire continent,” he said.
