The volume of trade between Nigeria and the United States of America has risen to a record level of $36 billion per annum, President Goodluck Jonathan said yesterday in Washington DC. Speaking at a dinner held in his honour by the United States Chambers of Commerce and the Corporate Council on Africa, Jonathan said investments would continue to grow with greater cooperation between Nigeria and its allies in the United States Government and private sector.
He said the present administration welcomed the support of the Obama administration and organisations for ongoing efforts to positively transform the Nigerian economy and ensure that it becomes one of the twenty largest economies in the world by the year 2020.
He called for even greater direct investment in Nigeria, saying that the recent developments had shown that President Barack Obama was right when he spoke in September, last year, of the increasing international recognition of Nigeria’s role in the global economy.
He said: “Our economy has since been re-based and it is now thelargest in Africa. We are the 26th largest economy in the world and the largest trading partner of the United States in Africa. Latest figures show the volume of trade between Nigeria and the U.S. to be $36 billion and still counting.
“Between last year and now, we hosted the World Economic Forum on Africa which was attended by 1,000 participants from 70 countries.
The Forum attracted over $68 billion in investment to the African continent in the form of Foreign Direct Investments, as well as private and public investments targeted at projects that would foster the agriculture sector, improve infrastructure such as roads, railways, hospitals, education, skill development and ICT across African countries.
“We remain the largest source of natural gas and have large areas of unexploited fertile lands for agriculture. We have a huge stock of untapped solid minerals and we continue to make Nigeria an attractive destination for foreign investors through the constant implementation of our policy of creating an attractive and conducive climate for investors.”
He assured American investors that government was taking all necessary action to overcome the Boko Haram insurgency and achieve greater security of lives and property in all parts of Nigeria.
