National News
Ghana, Nigeria to invest in non-oil sector- Envoy
Ghana, Nigeria to invest in non-oil sector- Envoy
By: Michael Mike
The Ghana High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ambassador Rashid Bawa on Thursday revealed plans by his country and Nigeria to partner in area of non-oil sector.
The Envoy stated this at the 2022 Ghana Nigeria Business Council CEO Forum in Abuja.
Bawa said the latest partnership between the two countries would extend to the agricultural sector such as cassava and ginger production.
He said: “This is the first Ghana Business Council Meeting. We are looking at various areas of cooperation. There have been series of meetings in the last few days. We are looking at the non-oil sector; in the area of cassava and ginger production.”
Bawa, while noting that the relationship between Nigeria and Ghana have been for ages, said: “It is difficult to put a finger on the number of Nigerians visiting Ghana for various reasons daily, and vice versa.”
He added that: “However, according to a report published by the US Department of Economic and Social Studies in 2019, there were more Ghanian residents in Nigeria than any other country in the world with 233,002 persons. This was followed by Ghanians living in UK and the US.”
The forum, which is historic according to him, is the first of its kind since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area, AfCFTA.
He said: “The forum aims to encourage the private sector operatives of our two countries to pull resources together to be competitive when trading under AfCFTA,” insisting that: “We have the framework of ECOWAS protocol in the last fourty years to promote this kind of activities,” and then with the coming up of AfCFTA, “Ghana-Nigeria have the biggest economies in West Africa region, it is high time we formalize these engagements in order to take full advantage of the potentials between both countries.”
He said with this forum, there should be many more to come, for “we don’t want it to be a one-time forum. We want to sustain it. As we speak, the Nigeria Investment Promotion Council and Ghana Investment Promotion Council are working out arrangement in ways they will have annual meetings among themselves.
“There will be coordination between Nigeria and Ghana businessmen. We believe that pretty soon, we are going to have certain collaboration that will be beneficial to both countries.”
Meanwhile, Ghanians CEOs have been urged to create platforms for Nigerians to connect with investments opportunities that can generate growth for economies of both Ghana and Nigeria and create a win-win situation for both countries.
The President, Abuja Chambers of Commerce and Industry, ACCI, Dr. Al-Mujtaba Abubakar in his opening remark at the 2022 Ghana Nigeria Business Council CEO Forum in Abuja urged Ghana to take advantage of the population of Nigeria as it presents a large consumer market for investors and traders.
He said: “In 2009, Nigeria net trade with Ghana in the export of metal was $2.1 billion, transportation $1.59 billion, mineral product $232 million.
“In 2019, Ghana had a trade net with Nigeria in the export of footwear and headwear worth almost $105 million, foodstuffs worth $25million and chemical products worth over $11million dollars.
Abubakar who was represented by Dr. Aliyu Idi Hong, a former minister of state for health and later foreign affairs, who is the Vice President Communication, Strategy and External Relations of the ACCI, said the forum underscores the importance of the partnership between the countries over the years, urging that the forum should not just be a one off thing.
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Abubakar commended the effort of ECOWAS and the governments of Nigeria and Ghana towards the quick intervention in resolving the crisis between the Nigerian and Ghanians traders in Ghana.
He said: “I think the intervention will go a long way in making sure that the relationship between the two countries and the vision of the ECOWAS to be quickly integrated.
“So it is highly commendable that the government of these countries have taken initiative towards solving this crisis.”
He however lamented that the forum was coming a little late for if had existed the crisis between Nigerian and Ghanaian businessmen would not have festered. He admitted though that it was rather late than never.
Ghana, Nigeria to invest in non-oil sector- Envo
NAN, AWALCO Partners to Promote ECOWAS Parliament
By: Michael Mike
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) has pledged to partner the Association of West African Legislative Correspondents (AWALCO) to publicise the activities of the ECOWAS Parliament, particularly its 25th anniversary celebrations.
The Managing Director of the agency, Malam Ali Muhammad Ali,, made the pledge when the leadership of the association paid him a courtesy visit in his office in Abuja on Thursday.
Ali while expressing appreciation to the association’s officials for deeming it worthy to pay him a courtesy visit, said as Africa’s biggest news content provider, NAN was home to all.
He said: “For deeming it worthy to come and pay us this courtesy call, the agency is appreciative.
“We hope that it will help the Parliament achieve its goals, and raise awareness, like you said, about its activities.
“On our part, the News Agency of Nigeria, like you know, is Africa’s biggest news content provider.”
He noted that the agency is the most authentic and biggest news hub in Africa, with a domineering influence and reach within the West African subregion.
Ali said: “So, with an association like this, certainly in the News Agency of Nigeria, you find a soulmate, a fellow traveler. You are welcome. We look forward to partnering and doing more, and the News Agency of Nigeria is your home.”
Speaking earlier, AWALCO President, Mr Innocent Odoh, explained that the purpose of the visit was to seek the collaboration and support of NAN, as the indisputable leader in terms of news credibility reportage, and viability.
He said that ECOWAS Parliament would be marking its 25th anniversary on November 16 and a series of activities had been lined up for it.
Odoh said that AWALCO, being the association of the parliament’s press corps, was fully involved in it by way of planning to give the occasion a media and publicity glitz.
He said this would help to propagate the ideals of ECOWAS in general, and ECOWAS Parliament in particular, and make the objectives of ECOWAS Commission and Parliament known globally, starting from the subregion.
He said: “In terms of viability, if we talk about the repository of news in all ramifications, in all dimensions, I think the News Agency of Nigeria comes first before any other one.
“So, what we are doing is in line with the media advocacy that we are projecting for the ECOWAS Parliament at 25.
“We can see that if the collaboration with NAN takes off as we planned it, I think it will go a long way in expanding the vision of the association.”
The AWALCO president further said that the partnership would determine how the regional bloc is run, especially at a time that so many things about ECOWAS needed to be interrogated.
“That is why we’re here, to seek that collaboration, to seek that support, how we can deepen that collaboration to ensure that the citizens of the Parliament understand what is happening around them.
“ECOWAS has a vision of 2050 but many people may not be aware of it, but collaborations like this can open up an opportunity for people to understand the vision of ECOWAS,” he added
on her part, Chief Communication Officer, ECOWAS Parliament, Mrs Uche Duru,, who was part of the delegation, in a remark, extended greetings from ECOWAS Parliament Speaker and Secretary-General to Ali and NAN’s management.
The spokesperson for the parliament said the association was beyond Nigeria, as its membership encompassed the entire West Africa, including even from member states that were threatening to exit or had already exited.
NAN, AWALCO Partners to Promote ECOWAS Parliament
National News
Nigeria, China May Head for Diplomatic Row Over Shooting of Immigration Officer at Chinese Firm
Nigeria, China May Head for Diplomatic Row Over Shooting of Immigration Officer at Chinese Firm
By: Michael Mike
Nigeria is not taking lightly the shooting of an immigration officer at a Chinese firm in Jos, Plateau State.
The Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo who narrated the story,
The federal government has threatened a serious diplomatic row with the Republic of China over maltreatment of a Nigerian Immigration Service officer shot by a Chinese company in Nigeria for asking for the company’s expatriate list.
Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who narrated the story on Thursday in Abuja at a stakeholders sensitisation workshop on the implementation of the Nigeria Visa policy 2025, said Nigeria is not handling the matter with kid gloves as it would be taken up as a diplomatic issue.
Tunji-Ojo lamented that the development alone is an attack on Nigeria. It will never be condoned.
He said the Immigration officer, who was on official duty, had visited the Chinese company in Jos, Plateau state, to check the list of the company’s expatriates, but the owner of the company ordered a security officer in the premises to shoot the government official.
Tunji-Ojo said: “I won’t go to China as a Nigerian, open a company and tell my security to shoot a government official in uniform. It’s never done anywhere in the world.
“These officers put their lives on the line. These officers serve this country with their all. And you will not come from anywhere and ask them to shoot them in their fatherland.
“It will no longer happen. We will take it up with you. Because that company, we (Nigerian government) have the power to withdraw their business permit Nigeria and declare them illegal.”
He wondered how it had become an offence for an Immigration officer to visit a foreign company and demand to see their expatriate list.
He said: “It will not happen again. So we’re going to be very hard. We will not stop your business. We will not overburden your business. But don’t make us inferior in our own land. No, please.
“And we’re going to be very tough on this. Because talking to you, I’m not just talking with passion on this topic, I’m talking with a lot of anger, because that guy that was shot is a Nigeria that we all swore to protect by virtue of the laws of Nigeria, by the constitution. That Immigration guy was not shot by a terrorist, is a father, he is a son to somebody. He is a husband to somebody. That cannot happen anywhere in the world.
“We will not tolerate it. Please, no agent, no company is above the law,” the Minister declared
Nigeria, China May Head for Diplomatic Row Over Shooting of Immigration Officer at Chinese Firm
Nigeria Explores CNG Technology to Power Defence, Industrial Vehicle Fleets
By: Michael Mike
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar has led a high-level delegation on a tour of UROVESA—a renowned Spanish manufacturer of military and industrial vehicles.
The visit focused on exploring potential collaboration in Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) technology for powering Nigeria’s defence and industrial vehicle fleets.
The minister was accompanied on the visit by key figures including the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ekperikpe Ekpo; Presidential CNG Initiative representative, Engr. Michael Oluwagbemi; Engr. Henry Oki; and the Special Assistant for Gas Business and Investment to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), where they all engaged in detailed discussions with UROVESA executives.
During the visit, Tuggar emphasized the longstanding trade ties between Nigeria and Spain, noting that Spain remains one of Nigeria’s top trading partners, with Nigerian crude oil exports reaching $3.64 billion in 2023.
He lauded UROVESA’s innovative approach to producing all-terrain, armoured, tactical, and logistical vehicles, and expressed Nigeria’s growing interest in and implementation of CNG-powered solutions.
Tuggar also highlighted Nigeria’s business-friendly economic reforms under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, which have positioned the country as a prime destination for investment in clean energy technologies. The discussions provided a valuable platform for further exploration of future collaborations between UROVESA and Nigeria’s Ministry of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas) in CNG-powered vehicle production and supply.
According to a statement by the foreign affairs minister spokesman, Alkasim AbdulKadir, the engagement not only reinforced Nigeria’s commitment to a green energy future but also laid the groundwork for modernizing the nation’s defence and industrial fleets with environmentally friendly and cost-effective energy solutions.
He said the promising outcome of the discussions sets the stage for a strategic partnership that is expected to foster sustainable innovation and drive economic growth for both Nigeria and UROVESA.
Nigeria Explores CNG Technology to Power Defence, Industrial Vehicle Fleets
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