President Bola Ahmed Tinubu recently participated at the G-20 summit, a meeting of the world’s largest economies which took place in New Delhi, India.
Tinubu after leaving India on Sunday proceeded to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) where he met with President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Highlight of ten things to know following Nigeria’s participation at the G-20 summit and the new deal President Tinubu struck with the UAE
- Nigeria has secured pledges worth nearly $14bn (£11bn) from Indian investors at the Nigeria-India economic roundtable in New Delhi.
- Among these many new investments, Indorama Petrochemical Limited has pledged $8 billion towards the expansion of fertilizer production and petrochemical facility in Eleme, Rivers State.
- Jindal Steel and Power Limited, one of India’s largest private steel producers, has committed to investing $3 billion in Nigeria, following discussions with President Tinubu on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in New Delhi, India.
- The founding President of SkipperSeil Limited, Jitender Sachdeva, announced that, following Tinubu’s personal intervention, he is investing $1.6 billion in the establishment of twenty 100MW power generation plants across the states of Northern Nigeria, amounting to 2,000MW of new power within the next four years.
- Additionally, Tinubu has approved the finalization of a new $1 billion agreement to bring the Defense Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) to 40% self-sufficiency in local manufacturing and production of defense equipment in the country by 2027 through a comprehensive new partnership with the Managing Arm of the Miltary-Industrial Complex of the Indian Government.
- Another Indian firm, Bharti Enterprises, which is a major first-generation corporation in India with interests in telecom, space communications, digital solutions, insurance, processed foods, real estate and hospitality has expressed its commitment to invest an additional $700 million in Nigeria, with work set to begin immediately.
- Tinubu apart from wooing investors from India convinced German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to advance the economic relationship between Nigeria and Germany after both men met at the G-20 summit.
- The United Arab Emirates has lifted the visa ban placed on Nigerians. The UAE authorities had in October 2022 slammed the visa ban on Nigerians.
- Tinubu has secured landmark deals with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) part of which will see both the Etihad Airlines and Emirates Airlines immediately resume flight schedules into and out of Nigeria, without any further delay.
As negotiated between both Tinubu and Al Nahyan, this immediate restoration of flight activity through these two airlines and between the two countries does not involve any immediate payment by the Nigerian government.
- In recognition of Tinubu’s economic development diplomacy drive and proposals presented by the president to his UAE counterpart, an agreed framework has been established which will involve several billions of U.S. dollars worth of new investments into the Nigerian economy across multiple sectors.
The sectors include defense, agriculture and others and will be made by the investment arms of the Government of the United Arab Emirates.
