Buhari urges Korean businesses to invest more in Nigeria

President Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday in Seoul invited top Korean business executives to increase their investments in Nigeria, while his administration would continue to make determined efforts to improve the enabling domestic environment for businesses to flourish.

Speaking during an audience he granted representatives of strategic Korean companies and industries on the sidelines of the World Bio Summit 2022 in the Republic of Korea capital, the president declared that “Nigeria remains committed to creating a stable and enabling business environment for foreign investors through the formulation of sound economic policies and improved governance,” adding that “the security forces have been working assiduously with local communities to ensure the security of lives and properties of Nigerians and foreign investors.”

According to him, “Our administration, has prioritized Power infrastructure under the Presidential Power Initiative. In this regard, Nigeria has procured modern power equipment which was inaugurated in September 2022 as part of the phased project to generate 25,000 megawatts of electricity by 2025. Furthermore, to ensure ease in the clearing of cargo, giant strides have been digitalised of the processes in our Sea-Parts as well as airports.”

Making a case for the country as investment friendly and choice destination, President Buhari further highlighted that, “With a nominal GDP of 431.97 billion USD, Nigeria’s economy remains the largest in Africa with vast human capital and natural resources. The steady improvement from the global economic downturn of 2020 indicates that the Nigerian economy is on firm path of recovery. I implore you, therefore, to take advantage of the many investment opportunities in Nigeria, especially in the areas of Oil and Gas, Trade, Manufacturing, ICT, Creative Industry and Culture exchange. It is worthy of emphasis to underscore that the business environment in Nigeria offers low corporate tax regime/ VAT rates, flexible labour market conditions and simple procedures for establishing businesses.”

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Acknowledging some significant investments by Korean companies in Nigeria in the fields of construction or heavy-duty industries, ICT and electronics as well as chemical production estimated as of 2021 at no fewer than twenty registered companies in Nigeria, among which are the Samsung, Daewoo and Hyundai Heavy Duty Industries as well as the LG and Samsung electronics and the Lotte Chemical industry, the Nigerian President expressed delight that these “companies have continued to contribute immensely to the growth of the Nigerian GDP and have created job opportunities in the country.”

According to him, “I look forward to increased investments by Korean private companies in Nigeria as we resolve the issues of enabling relevant agreements such as Investment Promotion and Avoidance of Double Taxation between our two countries.”

The Nigerian leader hoped that his engagements with Korean economic operators in priority areas would be mutually beneficial to both countries and their peoples.

Among the Captains of Industry that made remarks at the event were; Byung-Kwan KIM, Chairman Korean Importers Association; Sam Ka, CEO Korea Ship Building and Offshore Engineering; Seung Il Chow, Chief Operating Officer of Daewoo Engineering and Construction; Jaycee Jung, President/CEO, Samsung Heavy Industries, and Sang Ho Shiu, CEO, Kelon Group.

Speaking from the Nigerian end were Ladi Jadesinmi, Chairman LADOL; Mele Kyari, Group CEO, NNPC Ltd, and Bashir Yusuf Jamo, DG, NIMASA.

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