China-Nigeria Trade Volume Hits $20 billion mark

By: Michael Mike

The Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Yu Dunhai has disclosed that the current trade volume between Nigeria and China stands at over $20 billion.

The envoy also disclosed that efforts are on from both countries to ensure that the current volume of trade between both countries improves.

Yu spoke on Saturday during the Chinese New Year Celebration, with the theme “Year of the Golden Snake”

The Lunar New Year will be celebrated on Wednesday, Jan. 29. The occasion is based on the lunar calendar and takes place all around the world but it’s primarily celebrated by Asian countries. This year, it will mark the beginning of the year of the snake.

Speaking on China-Nigeria bilateral relations, the envoy said: “The trade volume exceeds $20 billion last year. And I think Nigeria is the largest engineering contract and the second largest exporting market and the third largest trade partner for China in Africa.

“And of course, we would like to work with Nigeria to bring our trade volume to even higher because we see there is a big potential.

“Nigeria is a major African country that has world influence and particularly Nigeria is now also a partner country of BRICS.

“So last year we held the forum for China-Africa cooperation and we look forward to working together with Nigeria to implement the ten action partnerships and to benefit people in Nigeria and China.”

Speaking on the significance of this year Chinese New Year Celebration, Yu said “we believe that it represents hard work, intelligence, happiness. So we hope that the year of the snake will bring peace and prosperity for Chinese and Nigerian people.

He also added, “Well, you know, the year 2025 is going to be a big year for China and Nigeria.

“It’s because last year, President Bola Tinubu paid a state visit to China and the two presidents agreed to elevate our bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. And one of the pillars for this relationship is the very close people to people and the cultural exchange. So for the Chinese embassy, each year we organize this spring festival temple fair.
“And this year we invited over 2,000, both Nigerians and the Chinese to enjoy, to celebrate together with us. Because the start of the Chinese New Year is usually is a time for celebration, a time for reflection and also a time for reunification.

“And we look forward to working with people from all walks of life in Nigeria to materialize the very important consensus we reached between our two heads of states and bring our two countries’ cooperation to a new level.”

On his part, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Minister of Arts, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Mr. Raphael Obi, urged the Chinese to invest in the country’s Creative industry, noting that there is so much to be tapped from Nigeria’s rich culture.

He said: @There is a lot Nigeria and China can do together we have a lot of cultural exchanges and we’re inviting every Chinese that wants to stay and work in Nigeria to feel free, come in and do so because we have a lot of space. In the creative economy alone, we have millions of spaces because that is where we showcase our talents.

“Then the arts, culture and tourism is a very vast sector in Nigeria but we’re inviting the people of China to come and share those things that make them special in the world to share with us and we also wish our own with them.

“China is a very rich cultural country just as Nigeria and we have a lot of things in common at the cultural and tourism level.

He prayed for a stronger China “and the opportunity to continue to share their talents, their resilience and their prosperity with the rest of the world so that the world will be a better place for everybody to live.”

China-Nigeria Trade Volume Hits $20 billion mark