NIGERIA IS AN INVESTMENT PARADISE - EUROPEAN UNION
The European Union (EU) has described Nigeria as an investment paradise, with the potential for a high return on all business investments.
A delegation, made up of two commissioners, Messrs Louis Michel and Andris Piebalgs, from the commission, said this during a courtesy call on the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, in Abuja.
The EU delegation described the country as one of the most endowed nations that was viable for all forms of investments.
Members of the delegation noted that Nigeria was richly endowed with all that was needed for all kinds of investments, and with a huge potential for high returns on such investments. Specifically, the EU commissioners said that Nigeria’s rich natural resources, combined with its rich human resources, makes it an investment paradise on earth.
They added that apart from these resources, the country had a very large market, which was a guarantee for high returns on all investments.
Similarly, the EU officials said that they were interested in the country's energy and gas sectors, and stated the commission's commitment to investing in the sectors.
They pledged their desire to work with the Nigerian authorities in finding a lasting solution to the lingering Niger Delta problem that has bedevilled the country in particular and the international oil market as a whole.
They further noted that solution to the region's problem was only in the full mobilisation of indigenes of the region as well as all who have stake in the area.
While responding, the Minister of Foreign Affairs said that the partnership between Nigeria and the EU was capable of fast- tracking the country’s economic transformation and development.
He added that Nigeria was already doing all that was possible in order to ensure that its economy did not only remain buoyant but also robust, with or without oil.
He commended the EU for showing interest in the country’s oil and gas sector, saying such interest would help the economy and also help in tackling poverty in Nigeria.
On Niger Delta, he noted that the government was determined to solve the problem as evident in the formation of the technical committee on the region.
He called on all Nigerians resident abroad, especially in Europe, to join hands with government in the search for development in the country, through the deployment of their expertise to bear on all development activities in Nigeria.
Meanwhile, Mr. Andris Piebalgs, the European Union (EU) Commissioner for Energy, yesterday gave the assurance that the EU would not give any pre-conditions on its energy partnership with Nigeria.
Piebalgs gave the assurance at a press briefing in Abuja.
"Though there are no pre-conditions to the EU-Nigeria energy partnership, adequate legal framework would be put in place for its effective implementation," he said.
He said that the European Commission, through the European Development Fund, had allocated 580 million euro (about N104.4 billion) to Nigeria for projects' implementation for a five-year period.
He said that although Nigeria did not request for any assistance in the sector, the EU was, nonetheless, undertaking the project because 20 per cent of oil and 80 per cent of gas produced in Nigeria were sold to European countries.
"Energy has become the key issue for Nigeria's development.
Already, there is a good element to work upon, including the gas master plan," he said.
He further noted that the EU s support in the sector was not only on a bilateral level but also on a regional level, adding that nearly 14 African countries had indicated their interest in similar energy projects.
Piebalgs noted that most developed countries were gradually moving away from expensive energy sources to bio-fuel, noting that Africa had a huge potential for bio-fuel production and usage.
