UNGA77: Nigeria’s Buhari woos foreign investors, says country ripe for investment
The Informant247 – Nigeria’s economy is ripe for increased investment, President Muhammadu Buhari told foreign investors on Thursday in New York.
“Overall, the Nigerian economy is ripe for increased investment. But on the contrary, private capital flows into Nigeria, consisting mainly of Foreign Direct Investment, have slowed, hindering the financing of much-needed infrastructure,” Buhari said at the Nigeria International Economic Partnership Forum held on the margins of the 77th UN General Assembly.
Buhari, who acknowledged security to be a critical element for investment inflow, pledged that his government would do more to improve security.
He also lauded the Nigerian military for making significant progress in the fight against insecurity and building momentum in reducing challenges to its barest minimum.
“We will continue to give all necessary support to our security outfits to ensure that they are able to tackle the challenge headlong”, he said, stressing that ”the advantages and disadvantages of investing in Nigeria far outweigh the challenges.”
Buhari, who was represented at the opening session by his Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, also declared that in spite of the global crisis fuelled by the Ukraine-Russian war, the lingering COVID-19 pandemic and insurgency in some parts of the country, Nigeria is on course to take her rightful place in the global economy.
He noted that the quarterly GDP growth in Q1 2022 has been mostly driven by the non-oil sector, giving credence to the revenue source diversification agenda of his regime.
“The agricultural sector, our most important, has remained resilient in spite of security concerns, low irrigation, limited inputs, and legacy infrastructure challenges, with strong food demand bolstering growth. Growth in manufacturing reflected stronger household and business consumption on account of the reopening of economic activities and improvement in supply chains.”
