The federal government through the Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo has called for an enhancement of bilateral trade between Nigeria and the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.
The minister, who stated this at the inauguration of the Commercial Display Room of the Bangladesh High Commission in Abuja at the weekend, said he was delighted that the two-way trade between the two countries has increased from US$11.27 million in Year 2018/2019 to US$144.75 million in 2019/2020.
In a press release issued on Sunday by the Special Assistant to Hon Minister, Ifedayo Sayo stressed the need to further enhance the trade relations.
The Minister noted that there are huge potentials for strengthening trade and economic relations between the two countries, which has largely remained unutilised.
“Nigeria under the visionary leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari enjoys a respectful place in the world, and it has already become the largest economy in Africa. Nigeria has taken a series of steps to diversify its export basket as too much dependence on its oil revenue cannot be a viable option.
“I fully agree with what the Hon Commerce Minister of Bangladesh has just said. There are huge potentials for strengthening trade and economic relations between Bangladesh and Nigeria which remain largely unutilised,” he said.
On the launching of the commercial display room at the mission, he described it as an innovative idea to showcase export potentials of any country in a foreign land.
“He said, “I am impressed to see the wide and wonderful collections of the exportables of Bangladesh in beautifully designed and tastefully decorated shelves.
“I have no doubt that the display room will go a long way to get a sense about the export potentials of Bangladesh and the investment climate in the country.
“We will also be happy to explore increased imports from Bangladesh while Bangladesh may like to consider importing products like oil and cotton, cashew nuts, among others from Nigeria.
“We are aware of Bangladesh’s unique position as being the second largest exporter of ready-made garments in the world, only after China, and we invite Bangladesh’s potential investors to come and invest jointly in Nigeria, in the sectors like textile/pharmaceutical/ceramics, jute etc. in the various industrial zones that we are setting up in Nigeria.”
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