On the sidelines of the Forum on
China and Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, President
Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday assured existing and prospective Chinese
investors of high-level support for their investment plans in
Nigeria.
In separate meetings with
prospective investors, President Buhari said Nigeria is endowed
with abundant human and material resources as well as a young
population that is very energetic and innovative and ready to
work.
He encouraged Chinese companies
and entrepreneurs to take advantage of the improved business
environment in Nigeria to invest in key sectors of the economy.
Acknowledging the contributions
of Chinese companies in Nigeria in developing the country’s
infrastructure, the President noted that there was still more to
do.
President Buhari with President of
Ruyi group Yafu Qui
The Ruyi Group, a leading Chinese
company, had met with the President with a plan to invest $200
million for an industrial park in Kano State, cotton farms in
Funtua, Katsina State and textile and garment manufacturing
establishments in Aba, Abia State and Lagos.
The proposed investment will
cover the entire cotton value chain, farming, ginning, spinning,
weaving and power generation to support the processes.
Ruyi Group Chairman, Mr. Yafu Qui
told President Buhari that they settled for Nigeria after
one-and-a-half year search for an African hub because of the
country’s population, abundant human and material resources and a
‘strong leadership’ that has diversification agenda for the
country.
President Buhari also received
Professor Justin Yify Lin of the Pekin University, a former World
Bank Chief Economist, currently serving as a consultant to the
Nigerian government on the setting up of Special Economic
Zones.
In this follow-up meeting after
the first in 2016, Professor Lin told the President that progress
has been made with the identification of the cotton value chain as
a pilot for the setting up of labour intensive industrial parks,
noting that the idea of the Ruyi Group as an investor was partly
coming from their studies.
At a separate meeting, the Senior
Vice President of, telecom giants, Huawei, Yi Xiang announced that
the company will provide 10,000 Nigerians talent training in ICT
each year.
Huawei is executing the second
phase of the National Information and Communications Technology
Backbone Project (NICTIB II) $328 million project, which was signed
between China and Nigeria earlier on Wednesday.
The telecom giant chief said of
the 10,000 Nigerians, half of them will undergo intensive training
on Huawei certification programme to empower them to work anywhere
in the world.
Mr Yi also told President Buhari
the company had trained 1,000 civil servants in Nigeria and will
offer additional 1,000 training slots for training within and
outside the government.
Responding, President Buhari
expressed satisfaction on the development of the ICT infrastructure
backbone in the country, noting that it was consistent with the
administration’s determination to institute e-governance to help
fight corruption by increasing transparency.
The President added that the
project would promote better education in the rural areas and
encouraged Nigerian youths to optimize the opportunities of the new
infrastructure facilities.
President Buhari also played host
to top executives of CITEC Group, who indicated interest on
investing in real estate, finance, infrastructure, agriculture and
telecommunications in Nigeria.
On the sidelines of the Forum on
China and Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, President
Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday assured existing and prospective Chinese
investors of high-level support for their investment plans in
Nigeria.
In separate meetings with
prospective investors, President Buhari said Nigeria is endowed
with abundant human and material resources as well as a young
population that is very energetic and innovative and ready to
work.
He encouraged Chinese companies
and entrepreneurs to take advantage of the improved business
environment in Nigeria to invest in key sectors of the economy.
Acknowledging the contributions
of Chinese companies in Nigeria in developing the country’s
infrastructure, the President noted that there was still more to
do.
President Buhari with President of
Ruyi group Yafu Qui
The Ruyi Group, a leading Chinese
company, had met with the President with a plan to invest $200
million for an industrial park in Kano State, cotton farms in
Funtua, Katsina State and textile and garment manufacturing
establishments in Aba, Abia State and Lagos.
The proposed investment will
cover the entire cotton value chain, farming, ginning, spinning,
weaving and power generation to support the processes.
Ruyi Group Chairman, Mr. Yafu Qui
told President Buhari that they settled for Nigeria after
one-and-a-half year search for an African hub because of the
country’s population, abundant human and material resources and a
‘strong leadership’ that has diversification agenda for the
country.
President Buhari also received
Professor Justin Yify Lin of the Pekin University, a former World
Bank Chief Economist, currently serving as a consultant to the
Nigerian government on the setting up of Special Economic
Zones.
In this follow-up meeting after
the first in 2016, Professor Lin told the President that progress
has been made with the identification of the cotton value chain as
a pilot for the setting up of labour intensive industrial parks,
noting that the idea of the Ruyi Group as an investor was partly
coming from their studies.
At a separate meeting, the Senior
Vice President of, telecom giants, Huawei, Yi Xiang announced that
the company will provide 10,000 Nigerians talent training in ICT
each year.
Huawei is executing the second
phase of the National Information and Communications Technology
Backbone Project (NICTIB II) $328 million project, which was signed
between China and Nigeria earlier on Wednesday.
The telecom giant chief said of
the 10,000 Nigerians, half of them will undergo intensive training
on Huawei certification programme to empower them to work anywhere
in the world.
Mr Yi also told President Buhari
the company had trained 1,000 civil servants in Nigeria and will
offer additional 1,000 training slots for training within and
outside the government.
Responding, President Buhari
expressed satisfaction on the development of the ICT infrastructure
backbone in the country, noting that it was consistent with the
administration’s determination to institute e-governance to help
fight corruption by increasing transparency.
The President added that the
project would promote better education in the rural areas and
encouraged Nigerian youths to optimize the opportunities of the new
infrastructure facilities.
President Buhari also played host
to top executives of CITEC Group, who indicated interest on
investing in real estate, finance, infrastructure, agriculture and
telecommunications in Nigeria.
Read more https://apc.com.ng/buhari-harvests-multi-billion-dollar-investments-in-china/